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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23290834">Sympathy for the Devil</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verti/pseuds/Verti'>Verti</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sympathy for the Devil [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword &amp; Shield | Pokemon Sword &amp; Shield Versions</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Demon!Leon, Established Relationship, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Wing Kink, molting</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 11:09:11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>21,916</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23290834</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verti/pseuds/Verti</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Molting proves to be a very... complicated process for Leon. Raihan, to the best of his ability, tries to help.</p><p>Sequel to Eternity in a Second. Demon!Leon AU.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sympathy for the Devil [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1653688</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>320</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Daylight Breaking</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"<em>I don't know if we are something between god and demon<br/>Weak mortals, transient beings doing invisible dreams<br/>Eternal I will not lament as I am falling deep to your fears."</em></p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>this is a direct follow up to <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22701553/chapters/54256849">Eternity in a Second</a>!!! pls read that first it will make a lot more sense. </p><p>there will be sex. but more explicit this time</p><p>Enjoy!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He doesn’t think much of it, the first time he sees one. </p><p>They’re lying in bed together, naked and in each other’s arms when Raihan spots something on his boyfriend’s shoulder. It’s small, indistinguishable from a stray fluffball or lint, and Raihan plucks it from Leon’s skin absent-mindedly.</p><p>Then, he frowns. “Is this a feather?” </p><p>Leon, on the other hand, just nestles his face further against Raihan’s armpit, one arm curled around his waist. He makes a disgruntled noise when Raihan uses it to tickle behind his earlobe, before peeking an eye out to glare at the offending object. He blinks, “Yeah, it is.”</p><p>“Yours?” Raihan turns the feather over in his palm. </p><p>It’s completely black, barb included, but lacking the distinct sheen from preening that makes him think the color isn’t entirely natural. The ends of the vane are dry and cracked, slightly rough and chalky to touch, and Raihan’s finger comes away with a bit of grey dust when he runs it against the edge of the plume. That explains it well enough, then.</p><p>“Probably,” Leon stops trying to smush his face into the crook of Raihan's arm in favor of resting his head against his bicep and watching him inspect it more. “Sorry, guess it just happens sometimes when I’m not paying attention. There’s not more, is there?”</p><p>Raihan peers over at the demon’s otherwise feather-less back. He also, for the sake of it, takes a moment to admire the collection of light scratch marks on his boyfriend’s skin. Damn, Raihan didn’t even know he could reach back there. “Nope. Is something wrong?”</p><p>“Not really.” Leon shrugs, taking the feather from him. He clenches his fist around it, and Raihan hears a faint crackling sound as it's crushed into ash in his palm. Leon opens his hand again and blows the remains off the bed. “It’s just a stray, maybe I lost concentration or something and let it slip through.”</p><p>Raihan grins, “My ass felt that good?”</p><p>Leon snorts, but it’s impossible to miss the hungry glint in the demon’s eyes. “Don’t remember. I’ll have to try it out again to make sure.” Then, he’s flipping himself over and wiggling his way back between Raihan’s legs. “Up for round two?”</p><p>“Only if you didn’t blow ash all over my bedsheets,” Raihan says, even while spreading his thighs to accommodate his very eager boyfriend. “‘M not in the mood to do laundry right now.”</p><p>“I’ll just end up doing it anyway,” Leon rolls his eyes and leans in close for a kiss. “Seeing as how you've made me basically your live-in housekeeper at this point. ’S your night to do the dishes though.”</p><p>“Too right,” Raihan sucks on his bottom lip. “Now shut up and wreck me so hard that I don’t have to.”</p><p> </p><p>The next time, it’s <em>slightly </em>less inconspicuous.</p><p>It’s two days later, and Raihan is overseeing some of his studio interns as they set Leon up to photoshoot his next Instagram post.</p><p>Recently, his demon boyfriend has been slowly catching up to Raihan in popularity on social media and— well, Raihan has a lot of complicated and just, generally weirded out feelings about that, but nothing he’s immature enough to voice out loud. </p><p>He’s still ten million or so followers in the lead, but Leon has a certain novelty and charisma to him that’s pulling in more viewers a day than Raihan is; especially when his particular... <em>condition </em>requires him to post only professionally shot photos and promotions. It’s clear that Raihan is no longer the only one who finds the demon extremely attractive and fuck-able since Leon’s been getting nearly as many sponsorships and advertisements as he does nowadays.</p><p>Leon, for one, basically thrives off the number of thirst comments and likes his posts get. It’d be kind of cute if Raihan wasn’t somewhat doubtful about how <em>literal </em>his reaction is; and whether or not Leon is feeding off of his followers’ attention in more ways than one. He’s learned not to question these things about the demon<em> too </em>much, anyways. </p><p>Raihan is, however, a very supportive boyfriend, and an equal whore for attention and clout, which explains why he’s more than happy to lend out his studio for Leon to use for some of his upcoming promotions.</p><p>The shoot is relatively simple— just a single post for some indie fashion sponsor— so Raihan’s content enough to let Sebastian or Camilla take the reins in setting up the shot without giving too much input. Aria’s dressed Leon up in a plain white shirt and pants, followed by one of the colorful scarves sent over by the sponsor. Leon, of course, is already preening like a peacock, switching between potential poses against the backdrop they’ve chosen while Sebastian readies the camera.</p><p>There’s a series of flashes and clicking noises, before Raihan strolls over to peer behind his intern’s shoulder for a peek at the shots.<br/>
<br/>
“Is that supposed to be there?” Sebastian zooms in on the image he’s pulled up on the camera once he’s within earshot. </p><p>The picture enlarges, and Raihan frowns as he sees what looks like a bit of black smeared against the cream-colored background behind Leon’s figure. It doesn’t look like any of the corruption that sometimes comes through with the demon’s photos, which usually borders more along unwanted glitches, glowing eyes, and the occasional large, black and scary unidentified figure. Raihan lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding; that’s saved him the trouble of feeding more lies about unwanted photo effects to his very diligent but also surprisingly gullible interns.</p><p>“Just looks like a bit of dirt,” Raihan says. “Camilla, can you double-check the backdrop?”</p><p>Leon sits up from where he’d been doing a very good pose impression of Rose from Titanic. “Is something wrong?”</p><p>“Looks like we got the background dirty,” Camilla says, already on set and clutching a towel and some window cleaner. Raihan is immensely proud of his fiery intern as he watches her attempt to man-handle the much taller and buff-er Leon out of the way to get at the spot of dirt. “Which is weird, because I checked it before we started and didn’t let anyone near—” She cuts off when Leon steps away from the center, revealing large grey streaks painted almost artistically across the wall and floor. </p><p>“Whoops,” Leon says, looking a bit sheepish. Camilla’s expression sours immediately.</p><p>Raihan winces, “Check your back, Lee.”</p><p>It looks like the demon had been rolling around in whatever dirt was on the backdrop— which, given the flamboyant runway of poses Raihan had just been privy to, isn’t exactly that far from the truth. Leon’s entire backside is almost completely covered with the same dark smudges, to the point where his previously clean white shirt looks almost black in color. Raihan grimaces again when he sees similar stains on the scarf. That’s gonna be a bitch to clean in time to return to the sponsor.</p><p>Behind him, Aria makes a small, distressed sound. Raihan makes a note to gift her something special next time, given the amount of work she’s going to put into getting that out of the garment. Fuck it, throw Camilla in as well, because he’s pretty sure the other girl's going to burst a vein from how increasingly contorted her expression is getting as she scrubs at the mess on wall. </p><p>Leon still looks suspiciously guilty as he tugs the scarf off to hand to Aria. “My bad, I probably went too overboard. Shouldn’t have rolled around that much.”</p><p>“Don’t worry about it, babe,” Raihan says, picking his way over to his boyfriend. He goes to put an arm around him, only to decide against it given the mess on his back and settles for an affectionate hair ruffle instead. “Who am I to deny my boyfriend when he’s havin’ the time of his life on set?” </p><p>Sebastian snickers something that sounds suspiciously like<em> sugar daddy</em> in response. Raihan makes a very pointed choice not to notice; he gets roasted enough by Piers already about over-babying Leon sometimes, let alone by the rest of his interns. It’s not <em>his</em> fault his boyfriend resembles a puppy more than he does a demon most of the time, especially when he gets pouty. Raihan is only human, after all.</p><p>“But on the <em>other </em>hand,” Raihan says, a bit louder than he originally intended, “I think we can postpone this until next week. Find a new backdrop ‘n all— this one’s disposable anyways and it’s too much of a hassle to clean, y’know. Shoot’s not due ‘till next month anyways.”</p><p>There’s a collective sigh of relief, and the small crowd around him disperses. Raihan turns back to Leon. “You good?”</p><p>The demon’s expression is pinched as he follows Aria with his gaze, watching her carry the scarf to the studio’s backroom to wash. “Yeah. There wasn’t any dirt before.”</p><p>“No,” Raihan says. “There wasn’t.” </p><p>Leon grinds a foot half-heartedly against the black smudges and kicks up small clouds of grey dust. He looks back up after a bit, blanching when he finds Raihan still staring at him.</p><p>“I should, uh, go change then,” The demon says, and scuffs up another dust cloud for good measure. “We’re done for the day, right?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Raihan says, “I‘ve got a bit more work to finish up first though. You can find your way back to the flat?”</p><p>Leon grins, “Wanna bet?”</p><p>“Actually—no, not after you ended up in Russia last time.” Raihan’s long learned that Leon’s demonic fast-travel powers do absolutely nothing for his sense of direction— in fact, it’s even worse, because Leon has somehow on multiple occasions crossed entire continents in his attempt to get back to their flat on the other side of town. </p><p>“They’re in the same direction,” Leon wrinkles his nose. “More or less. I think.” </p><p>Raihan sighs and kisses his directionally hopeless boyfriend. “Just wait for me in the breakroom, ‘kay? I’ll be done in a bit.”</p><p>“‘Kay.” Leo promptly turns the opposite direction.</p><p>“It’s that wa—you’re doing it on purpose, aren’t you. Are you?” Leon’s grin widens, and Raihan gives him a playful shove. “Oh, fuck right off, you arse.”</p><p>“Love you too,” Leon chimes, before thankfully heading in the right direction towards the changing rooms. </p><p>Raihan watches him leave, eyes lingering on the demon’s back. Upon closer inspection, Leon’s shirt isn’t completely stained black; the marks look textured, almost, with small cracks of the original white peeking through occasionally, and it takes Raihan a moment to realize he’s looking at an impression of feathers against a dust background.</p><p> </p><p>The final time, Raihan walks into his flat and swears out loud when he sees the same black streaks painted all over his walls.</p><p>At this point, he’s pretty—nope, definitely— sure there’s something up with Leon. Most of the time, Raihan’s perceptive enough to tell whether or not Leon is feeling up to something, even if the demon has a habit of pretending he suffers from human ailments like illness and fatigue as an excuse. It had been the same case earlier this morning, when Leon had feigned sick when he'd asked if he had wanted to come in to finish the photoshoot from last time. The main problem is, Leon hadn’t even bothered corporealizing like he usually does when he's playing up the sick role, only giving him some half-assed coughs before retreating with a gust of cold air back into their bedroom.</p><p>Despite his best hopes, Raihan can't help the sinking feeling that's growing in his gut as he steps his way past stained furniture and sets his bags down on the table.</p><p>It’s worse than what he’d seen at the studio; the smudges are larger, with one streak taking up a good quarter of the wall’s canvas by itself and extending to color the edge of his couch black. They’re spread out more erratically as well, short and quick bursts rather than the longer, more languid strokes he remembers seeing on the photoshoot’s backdrop as if their designated painter was being rushed to finish this time around. Raihan would probably be having a mild aneurysm over the cleaning costs if he wasn’t so worried about the person behind this. </p><p>“Leon,” He calls out. “Are you there?” There’s a crunching sound underneath his feet, and Raihan looks down to see a slightly ominous track of dried grey feathers going from the living room to their bedroom. </p><p>That’s somewhat of a lead, at least.</p><p>“Leon,” He tries again, a bit louder, as he follows the trail to the bedroom. “You okay, mate?” </p><p>There’s silence again.</p><p>“I’m deleting all your Minecraft files.”</p><p>Nothing. Raihan frowns, the sinking feeling in his chest growing. He stops in front of the bedroom door, and relaxes when he hears the muffled sound of something rustling beyond it. “Lee,” Raihan calls out softly, knocking once. “It’s me.”</p><p>There’s a bit more rustling before he gets his reply.</p><p>“...Raihan?”</p><p>Leon’s voice sounds uncharacteristically small and drained, and it’s enough for Raihan’s stomach to plummet. Then, he’s shoving the door open and barging in.</p><p>“Wait, Raihan, don’t—” </p><p>“Leon, what the <em>fuck</em> is goi—” Raihan breaks off and <em>stares</em>.</p><p>The bedroom’s in a similar state as the rest of the flat, covered in large smudges of black ash that run from one wall to another, followed by the occasional pile of grey feathers in the corner and on the bed. Leon is kneeling in the center of the room where most of the ash and feathers seem to have accumulated, topless and hunched over.</p><p>Sprouting, from the junction between his two shoulder blades, are two long black appendages. </p><p>Wings, some part of Raihan reminds himself, from a night that was filled with thunder and lightning and tears that an angel wept for him. </p><p>It’s been a while since he’s seen Leon’s wings fully displayed like this— two years, actually, and not since the whole incident with his family— but they’re striking all the same. Each limb is about twice the length of a human arm, which leads to a wingspan of around the width of the bedroom if Raihan discounts the asymmetrical breaks he knows are from hitting the ground too hard. </p><p>Besides that, there’s nothing that’s particularly wing-like about them, given that the majority of the feathers had long been burnt off in the same descent that had wrecked their span line. Nowadays, they’re mostly just bare skin and bone; blackened sinewy flesh wrapped around a light skeletal scaffolding, with the occasional feather clump and white joint sticking out from where the tissue was ripped a bit too far— burnt a bit too deep.</p><p>Except this time, there’s more white bone peeking out from underneath than he remembers, coupled with a certain sag to the bit of muscle that’s still clinging to its skeleton. The wings scuffle against each other when their owner moves, and Raihan blanches as he watches the movement displace more feathers and ash over the floor.</p><p>“Um,” Leon says, after what feels like an eternity of silence. “Please don’t freak out.”</p><p>To his credit, Raihan doesn’t really know what to say in the face of Leon’s skin peeling off like something out of an Eldritch horror game. “... That’s the stuff that’s been comin’ off you for the past week?”</p><p>“Yeah, it’s…” Leon fidgets, causing the tips of his wings to drag black streaks across the floor. He takes a deep breath, “I’m molting.”</p><p>“... Like an insect?”</p><p>“Like a <em> bird</em>.” Leon’s expression is equal parts exasperated and offended.</p><p>“Right, sorry,” Raihan shakes his head. “Dumb question. First things first— how are you doing?”</p><p>Leon makes a face and spares another glance at the wings behind him. “Could be better,” he admits. “It’s been a while since my last one, but I didn’t think I’d go through one here. It caught me off guard— I’m usually much neater than this, sorry.” He winces at the state of the room.</p><p>“‘S fine, we can get it cleaned up later,” Raihan waves his concerns off. “You said this has happened before?”</p><p>Leon nods, “Once a few centuries, I think. It’s just the shedding old feathers to grow new ones— not that I have much to replace, anyways.” He gives a demonstrative wiggle of his wings, scattering more dust into the air.</p><p>“What about—” Raihan gestures at the general space and the mess of ash smudges around them, “All… of this?”</p><p>Leon’s expression twists into something a bit more pained. “Consider it a substitution for not having enough feathers to molt.”</p><p>“... So, dandruff?”</p><p>“What?” Leon frowns, “No— it’s not. No. Gross. It’s not that. It’s— burnt dead stuff. From my wings.”</p><p>“That’s what dandruff is. You’ve been shedding dead skin all over the flat for the past week.”</p><p>“It’s— <em> not</em>. It’s. Soot. Or something. It’s not— I shed some feathers too. Shut up.” Leon looks like he’s having an existential crisis. “That’s so gross. I’m not— oh my god. I hate you so much.”</p><p>“You’re dusty, bruv.” Leon continues to stare at his upturned palms like he’s in the middle of performing some grand tortured soliloquy.</p><p>“I’m not <em>dusty</em>,” The demon says weakly. “It was poetic. Shedding only ash because I have no feathers left after I fell from grace. Now you’ve gone and ruined it.”</p><p>Raihan feels kind of bad because now Leon looks downright miserable about the implication that he’s peeling like someone after a bad sunburn. Which, he technically is. “Alright, you’re right mate, ‘m sorry. I’ll take it seriously.” </p><p>“I don’t possess the normal skin composition of a human,” Leon buries his face into his shirt. </p><p>“No, you don’t, babe.” Raihan cards his fingers through Leon’s hair, scratching at his scalp slightly the way he knows he likes it. Leon grumbles reluctantly before melting into his touch. “Is there anything I can do to help?”</p><p>He gets a grateful glance from the demon, followed by a nonchalant shrug. “Not much,” Leon shifts his weight again so he can slide more into Raihan’s lap, now resting his arms around his waist and his chin on his shoulder. Raihan returns the gesture automatically, wrapping his own arms around Leon. “It’s kinda uncomfortable, ‘cause I can’t hide them like I normally do. But it’s just a matter of waiting it out in the end.”</p><p>At the very least, Leon doesn’t look particularly ashamed or bothered by his current state of undress, both in terms of clothing and wing biology. Still, there’s a certain way to how he’s clinging a bit closer than usual that makes Raihan think otherwise; but that’s also to be expected, given what he knows about the demon’s complicated past.</p><p>“Okay,” Raihan says, content to let the subject go for now, and also for Leon burrow his face deeper into the crook of his shoulder. “Do you want some tea, then?”</p><p>Leon hums against him. “Tea sounds perfect.”</p>
<hr/><p>“You know,” Raihan says. “There’s a reason why I chose reptiles over cats as pets.”</p><p>“I know,” Leon says, voice muffled into a warm pile of freshly-washed bedding; that is, before he’d buried a good half of his upper torso into it and consequently smeared more ash on the fabric. He lets out a sound of immense satisfaction, not unlike that of a purr. </p><p>Raihan nudges him with one foot, “C’mon, mate. You’re the one who wanted to do laundry manually. We’ll have to put all of em’ through again.”</p><p>“I know,” Leon answers again. “Just so I could do this. I‘ll clean it up when I’m done.”</p><p>Raihan rolls his eyes but goes to set down his own basket of laundry in favor of joining his boyfriend in the tangle of sheets on the ground. He leans over to blow a puff of air into the demon’s ear, “You’re lucky I love you, or I would’ve kicked you out for wasting water and electricity.”</p><p>“Please,” Leon rolls his eyes back and pulls out his phone. “‘M financially independent now, you’ve got nothing on me.”</p><p>Even after all this time Leon's been an influencer, Raihan can’t help but snort at the idea. “Barely. It's not like you have any real use for money or other material possessions.”</p><p>“I have to pay for my data plan,” Leon says simply, already halfway through his feed. He opens up a comment thread, and starts typing away at a reply. </p><p>“You make a very poor case for an immortal deity, Lee.” Now that Leon’s preoccupied with his social media, Raihan takes the chance to lean his head against the sheets and soak up his own share of plushy comfort. Despite his attempts not to, he still ends up staring at the two appendages splayed out behind the demon’s back. </p><p>For the most part, there hasn’t been that much of a change to their daily routine since Leon’s started his molt, besides the new constant presence of his wings at all times. Apparently, this is the one time where he doesn’t have complete control over their appearance and visibility; so Leon’s resigned to working from home and away from the public eye until things go back to normal and he can de-corporealize them again. It also explains why he's currently also top-less, because any attempt to fit a shirt over his head has come away with nothing but large tears and rips in the fabric and a slightly perturbed demon. </p><p>At the very least, Raihan can comfort himself about the tragic loss of some of his favorite sweatshirts with the sight of his boyfriend’s impeccable body. Life is good, and so are Leon’s abs.</p><p>“How long does this last?” Raihan flicks at one bent joint, watching as the impact displaces off another puff of ash that settles on the sheets. Whatever, they have more laundry to do anyways.</p><p>“‘Bout a month or two,” Leon replies. “In human time, I think. The shedding only takes a few days to get done, though, and it’s the messiest part.”</p><p>“Really? That’s a lot shorter than I thought, ‘specially after—” Raihan gestures to the spread of laundry around them, “—how big of a deal finding out was.”</p><p>“It’s for the better, anyways. I don’t think it’ll be that bad, though I haven’t done it in the human world yet.”</p><p>“Anything I need to look out for?”</p><p>“Uh,” Leon thinks out loud. “Not— particularly. I can just clean up after myself until I finish the shed. Sex might be a bit weird, and I get sore easily when I have my wings out all the time.”</p><p>“Gotcha,” Raihan says. “Are you okay, though— about all of this? I know you don’t like looking at them.”</p><p>That’s enough to make the demon look up from his phone. “... I don’t,” he says slowly. “But it’s something that just happens inevitably. Can’t really help it like I usually do.”</p><p>“No sex then,” Raihan resolves. “And extra back massages.” </p><p>Leon snorts, “I don’t need to be pampered, mate. I’ve done this for the past millennium.”</p><p>“But have you ever done it with your dashing human boyfriend by your side?”</p><p>“...No?”</p><p>“While lying on piles of clean laundry as I serve you breakfast?”</p><p>“No,” the demon decides. “Okay, that does sound nice.”</p><p>“See? The power of human temptation.”</p><p>Leon cocks an eyebrow, “You’re not going to call me dusty again, are you?”</p><p>Raihan raises his hands up in surrender, “I don’t make the same joke twice, bruv— I have standards.”</p><p>“Debatable.”</p><p>“Wh— ass.” Raihan gives the wing a harder poke, only to sputter when he breathes in a cloud of dust instead. “You’ve been spending too much time with Piers.” </p><p>“Piers is on tour,” Leon replies, “But I <em> have </em>been texting him a lot. He says don’t die.”</p><p>“Charmed,” Knowing the singer, that’s about as close to sentiment as Raihan’s going to get while he’s away on his six-month-long national tour. “Tell him the same for me.”</p><p>“... If he’s not there to watch.”</p><p>Right. </p><p>“You know what,” Raihan reaches to try and pluck the phone out of Leon’s hand, ignoring the demon’s very amused grin. “Tell him I'm queuing up all of his preteen photos so they go online the moment my heart stops.”</p><p>“Duly noted,” Leon says, typing away again.</p>
<hr/><p>Thankfully, Leon does manage to stop shedding by the end of the week.</p><p>It’s for good reason also— with most of the burnt stuff gone, Leon’s finally started to grow in small bunches of black feathers in place of them.</p><p>It doesn’t look like there’s progress towards covering his span line completely, much less furnishing a full pair of wings; but there’s been enough growing out that Leon is now blessed with what sort of resembles a small pair of baby black wings. Despite their thin layers, the feathers look healthier— sleeker and softer than the cracked vanes Raihan remembers seeing at first— and more tightly bound around the joint. There’s not enough of them to enable any form of flight, even after Leon had deemed their growth finished, but the demon had still seemed generally satisfied with the outcome of one of his quickest sheds to date. </p><p>There’s still a bit of a gap in the logic here, like how Leon got from freshly molted wings to the burnt ones he had before in the first place. Raihan has a bit of an inkling of the answer, but what he has in mind is nothing concrete nor particularly <em>nice </em>to imagine for his boyfriend. So, instead, he files the question into the back of his mind as just another facet of Leon’s tragic and ambiguous backstory, in favor of focussing on giving the demon more cuddles and the occasional back rub. </p><p>Leon seems much happier not thinking about it, anyway, and Raihan’s damned if he lets his own morbid curiosity rob him of that.</p>
<hr/><p>“Like this?” Raihan works his fingers through a mass of black feathers gently, the plumes tickling the back of his hand as he drags it through the layers. </p><p>“Yeah,” Leon shivers a bit, his wings arching further into Raihan’s hands from the movement. “You can— go a bit rougher than that.”</p><p>“I don’t want to hurt you though,” Raihan replies, but repeats the motion a bit faster this time. The demon lets out a soft sigh of approval in response. “You sure you need me for this?”</p><p>Leon nods, “I can’t reach the back by myself, so it’s more efficient this way. ‘Sides,” He wiggles a bit closer to Raihan, nearly sitting in his lap. “I trust you, Rai.”</p><p>After all their time together, the statement still makes Raihan melt all the same. He opts to bury his face into the back of Leon’s neck, feeling warm and fuzzy against purple locks and mindful of the wings around him. “Alright.”</p><p>“Sap.”</p><p>“Can you blame me? I’ve got the best demon boyfriend in the world.”</p><p>Leon falls silent, save for a dusting of red on the back of his ears, and Raihan grins his victory into soft hair and tanned skin. “Who’s the sap now?”</p><p>“Shut up,” One wing furls in on itself to smack him lightly over the head. “You still have the top section left.”</p><p>“‘Course, babe.” Raihan pulls back from cuddling to reach for the vial of massage oil by the bed. He dumps a copious amount onto one palm and rubs his hands together.</p><p>Leon shudders again as Raihan starts working his fingers through the top coat, coating each feather with the oil. The demon lolls his head back, eyes closed in comfort. “... Feels good.”</p><p>Raihan can’t help but smile at the sight. “Do you do this every time?”</p><p>“Do what?”</p><p>“Act like Duraludon when I’m petting him.”</p><p>“Mm,” Leon doesn’t seem to mind the comparison to their pet monitor lizard. “I don’t blame him. Your hands feel nice—” He breaks off, a quiet moan spilling from his lips as Raihan works out a small tangle. </p><p>“Actually, don’t think I’ve ever heard Dura make that sound before.” Raihan raises an eyebrow. </p><p>“... They’re sensitive,” Leon admits. “Since they’re closer to the bone— plus, it’s an early shed so, <em>ah—</em>”</p><p>“Guess it has been a while since you’ve last done this. How’d you manage it on your own?” Raihan tugs at a bent feather. He pulls it loose with a quick jerk, and Leon lets out a short gasp. “Did that hurt?”</p><p>“Nah,” Leon shakes his head. “I had— brethren to help me back when there was more— <em>wing </em>to go around. Afterward… I just couldn’t really bring myself to care. They’re not exactly keen on angelic rituals back home anyways.”</p><p>“Thought you said it was because you couldn’t reach them.”</p><p>“That too,” Leon says lightly. </p><p>"... Well, you’ve got me now at least,” Raihan says, pretending not to notice the demon’s pointed choice of words. He goes to oil his fingers up a bit more before sticking them back inside the feathered layers, this time slowly digging deeper until he reaches the limb.</p><p>For its size, the arm feels surprisingly strong, tendon and sinew packed densely around the light bone. Raihan runs his hands along the length, marveling at the way the muscles ripple under his fingers. Apparently, even Leon’s wings aren’t exempt from being as ripped as the rest of him.</p><p>“Oh, <em>fuck—” </em></p><p>The loud moan that breaks through Leon’s throat snaps Raihan out of admiring his boyfriend’s general swole-ness. </p><p>“Shit<em>— </em> you okay, Lee?” </p><p>“Yeah,” Leon says, sounding breathless. His wings flex out around Raihan, as if encouraging him to explore the entire wingspan. “<em>Don’t stop.” </em> </p><p>Raihan swallows and nods, now pinching and rubbing the limb between his fingers. At this point, he barely knows what he’s doing anymore, but the demon seems to be enjoying it, melting against him and letting out soft, borderline <em>erotic </em>keens with every swipe of his thumb. It’s… Well, he’d be lying if he said it doesn’t remind him of anything, but Raihan’s already resolved to put Leon first before he even begins to consider his libido. </p><p>Leon’s slumped forwards completely now, his face pressed into the bedsheet and chest heaving from exertion. There’s a bit of tremor to his frame as Raihan works his way inwards, his body jerking slightly with every knead closer to the wing’s base. </p><p>“Mm— right there,<em> there</em>, Rai—”</p><p>… This is getting ridiculous. </p><p>“You know,” Raihan says after a long contemplative silence spent making sure he <em>isn’t </em>going to nut in his pants from Leon’s moans alone. That’d just be undignified. “You’re making it <em>incredibly </em>difficult to focus, babe.”</p><p>“S-sorry,” Leon pants, “—just, been a really long time. Just— there’s this one last spot, under the wing— gets sore easily, if you could just get at it—”</p><p>“Here?” Raihan digs two fingers into the small divot underneath where Leon’s left wing meets his back. “Wow, that’s tight.”</p><p>Leon groans and arches into his touch. “Yeah, right there,” He whines as Raihan begins to work the hard knot open under there. “Feels good, so good— <em>Ah.</em>” </p><p>Raihan takes a deep breath and counts to ten because— this is fine. Everything is fine. The massage is going <em>fine</em>. He throws a thigh over to straddle the small of the demon’s waist, rubbing a bit more oil on each hand before resting his palms against his back and using his whole body weight to dig a thumb under each wing.</p><p>“Raihan?” Leon’s voice is slurred from bliss. The only thing getting Raihan through this is the thought of having the hardest wank of his life in the shower afterward.</p><p>“Nearly done, Lee,” he promises, mouth as dry as a desert. “Just— gotta get this one out and then you can go wash off. Might hurt a bit.”</p><p>“Wha—<em> oh,</em>” Leon arches up when Raihan starts rolling his thumbs against the joints, mouth dropping open with a gasp. “Oh, fuck, Raihan, Rai<em>han</em>, there,<em> there</em>—” He breaks off into sharp keens, wings spasming and hips grinding hard into the bed as he squirms underneath him. </p><p>“Leon— hold <em>still</em>,” Raihan grits out, if only to distract himself from the sight of the demon and the growing tightness in his pants. “You’re gonna buck me off, bruv—”</p><p>“Please,” Leon chokes out, “please,<em> please</em>, I need—” He stiffens up suddenly, a small shiver running through his body as a broken moan works its way out from his throat. </p><p>Raihan's brain stutters to a stop. Fuck nutting in his own pants, because he’s pretty sure Leon just— </p><p>“... Did you just come dry?”</p><p>Leon doesn’t budge from his spot on the bed. “... Yeah.”</p><p>“Holy shit,” Raihan says. “That’s so fucking hot. Oh my god.”<br/>
<br/>
“That’s blasphemy,” Leon mumbles into the bed covers, wings still sort of quivering from the aftermath. “Sorry— guess they’re more sensitive than I remember.”</p><p>“No shit.” Now that everything’s died down a bit, Raihan’s had some time to catch his own breath and realize very belatedly that he’d just been essentially jacking Leon off for the past fifteen minutes. And <em>fuck, </em> if that doesn’t evoke something else inside of him entirely. “Are you okay now?”</p><p>“Mm,” Leon nudges for him to get off so he can roll over onto his back. He really does look like he’s just been fucked, face flushed and slit pupils blown up with lust, mouth slightly open as he gasps for air.</p><p>Raihan can feel the demon’s own gaze traveling over him before resting on the tent in his pants. “... Are you hard?”</p><p>“Who wouldn’t be, after the show you put on,” Raihan snorts and goes to scoot off the bed. Scoot, as in an attempt to. “No problem, though. Be back in a minute, babe.”</p><p>Leon shakes his head, a hand reaching out to snag at Raihan’s wrist. “Stay.”</p><p>Raihan frowns, “I thought you said—”</p><p>“I know,” Leon says simply, and turns him back to face him. He’s less flushed now, having caught his breath finally, but his expression is still filled with want and <em>need</em>. Leon shifts back to lean against the bed, wiggling out of his sweatpants and boxers. He opens his thighs, showing off his own erection. “... I want it. Please.”</p><p>Raihan is literally going to conk out at any minute from how lightheaded he is. He’s so hard now that it <em>hurts, </em>abdomen almost throbbing as he crawls obediently back onto the bed and between Leon’s legs and allows the demon to press their lips together. There’s nothing more he wants to do than just rut and whine against Leon— holy <em>fuck— </em> but Raihan still forces himself to break the kiss early. “Y— you sure?”</p><p>Leon tugs him back down for another. “You’re so good to me, Rai. Yes, I want it.” He reaches down to pull his cock out of his pants, and Raihan gives a strangled whimper at the sensitivity. “‘M all prepped already, don’t worry.”</p><p>“... Condom?”</p><p>“Aw, you're so sweet.” Leon cracks a smile.</p><p>Raihan shoots one last helpless look at his boyfriend. Then, he’s lining himself up against Leon’s hole, shivering a bit as he pushes into the dense heat. He feels tighter than normal, twitching around him in a way that tells him the demon’s not completely recovered from his dry orgasm yet— Raihan can’t even be bothered to continue that train of thought as he lets out a choked sob at the relief. “<em>Leon— </em>”</p><p>Leon hums, rolling his hips in response with a light sigh. “You’re so big inside me, Rai. Feels so good—” He gasps when Raihan gives a short rut of his hips, dick pressing into the spot he knows drives the demon mad. “Ah, <em>fuck</em>, yes—”</p><p>“Lee,” Raihan can’t even form proper words at this point. He’s already overstimulated as fuck from the massage foreplay and Leon is so hot and tight and <em>hot </em>around him that he doesn’t think he can even <em>move </em>properly without coming. Instead, Raihan just buries his face into Leon’s shoulder with a small whine, breath coming in gasps as he gives shallow thrusts inside of him. “Lee, <em>Lee,</em> ‘s too much, too much<em>—” </em></p><p>“Shh,” Leon brings him closer, the movement enough to make Raihan bite back another cry when it pushes his hips in deeper. There’s a distinct rustling sound, and Raihan feels soft feathers brush against his cheek as Leon wraps his wings around him as well. “I’m here, Rai, ‘m here. Just let it out, love how you feel inside me, you’ve been so, <em>so</em> good to me—”</p><p>“Leon—” It’s undignified, but Raihan can’t even be bothered to care as he mashes their lips together, whining and licking desperately into Leon’s mouth. “‘M close—” </p><p>Leon moans and returns the gesture. “I— know, <em>fuck</em>, Rai, inside, want it inside me—” Raihan feels the wings press closer, pushing him almost completely flush against the demon underneath him, and that’s enough for him to go over the edge.</p><p>“I love you,” he chokes out and sees stars as he spills deep inside of Leon. “I love you so much. You’re so fucking beautiful like this, I love you so much—” </p><p>“<em>Oh</em>,” Leon says in a strangled voice, before he’s coming over himself with a short cry, walls clenching down around Raihan’s cock and practically milking him dry. “Raihan—”</p><p>Raihan gives a few more desperate thrusts before he pulls out with a wet plop, leaving a small bit of come leaking out of the demon’s hole. He flops down on top of Leon, careful of the slick on the other’s abs, and buries his face into purple hair. “Please—don’t do that ever again.”</p><p>Leon shivers at the sensation, “— know, ‘m sorry. It was shitty of me to blue-ball you for the whole week.”</p><p>“What? No,” Raihan looks back at him, “No, not that, mate. I meant just— the massage and foreplay. Holy shit. That was the hottest thing I’ve ever seen. My balls are still hurting.”</p><p>“Oh, yeah,” Leon says, flushing a bit. His wings flutter once, beating gently against Raihan’s back, before he’s furling them up behind him. “Didn’t think that would happen, or at least not to the extent that it did. Sensory overload, or something."</p><p>“Or I’m just that good,” Raihan gives a lazy smirk as he nips at an ear. “Got me thinking I could be a masseur if this influencer stuff doesn’t work out in the end.”</p><p>“Better not,” Leon snorts, turning his head so he can meet Raihan’s mouth with his own instead. “Mine,” he mumbles against his lips.</p><p>“I’ll keep that in mind.” Raihan reaches a hand over to rub gently at Leon’s stomach. “Feelin’ better?”</p><p>“... Yeah,” Leon sighs. His image flickers for a second before he’s wiggling out from underneath him, body now cleaned off both inside and out. Leon tucks himself under Raihan’s chin. “Thanks, Rai.”</p><p>“No problem, babe.” Raihan does his own fair share of wiggling to get comfortable, wrapping his arms around the demon’s waist. He lets out a yawn, eyes beginning to slip close. “Anything for you.”</p><p>“Mm,” Leon hums in response, presence warm and comforting against his chest, and Raihan drops off to sleep.</p>
<hr/><p>Raihan wakes to an empty bed, and the distinct feeling of something missing in his arms.</p><p>It’s still dark out from what he can tell, but Leon usually leaves the bed a bit before sunrise so he can get started on breakfast. Raihan fumbles for his phone to check the time.</p><p>4:55. So maybe a bit early for breakfast, but the demon’s absence is still not entirely unexpected given his sleeping schedule— or rather, lack thereof. Leon <em>has </em>grown particularly fond of late-night re-runs of the Great British Bake Off; something along the lines of enjoying the chaos that comes with learning new confectionery techniques and witnessing the contestants’ on-air gradual descent into madness and desperation. </p><p>He has to go into the studio for a quick meeting at 7 though, so Raihan manages to pull himself up from bed in hopes of getting a quick work-out session before the day starts. He fumbles around a bit in the dark, flicking on his lamp before heading to the bathroom. </p><p>He goes to enter, before Raihan hears a faint shuffling sound beyond the door. He frowns, the last bits of sleep fading away as he presses an ear against it. </p><p>“... Leon?”</p><p>The shuffling stops at the sound of his voice, like someone waiting on bated breath. Raihan rests a hand against the door handle, pushing it down gently as a bit of a warning. </p><p>There’s no response, so he takes it as a cue to open the door. “I’m coming in, okay?”</p><p>Leon is sitting cross-legged on the bathroom floor, propped up against the small corner where the shower meets the wall. He’s pulled on a pair of sweatpants back on, as opposed to the state of undress that they both fell asleep in, long hair falling loosely over broad shoulders. His wings are out, albeit tucked close and curled around their owner’s body as if to shield him from the outside. It probably would’ve worked, Raihan thinks, if they were full enough to provide coverage.</p><p>The demon doesn’t look up even after he enters, too busy hunched over something in his lap. He’s reading, Raihan notices as he takes a few steps closer, mouthing the words to himself as he runs a finger along the text. </p><p>He stops in front of him, and waits a bit longer so Leon can finish the paragraph he’s on. “Hey.”</p><p>Leon pauses, before closing the book gently. “... Hey.”</p><p>Raihan cracks a small smile, “Didn’t think I’d ever see a demon reading the Bible.”</p><p>“Oh,” Leon looks down at the cover. “Yeah. Sorry, I found it in your desk. Hope you don’t mind.”</p><p>“No problem, ‘s not like I’ve ever used it.” It’s one of the very few souvenirs he’d bothered to keep from his family, but even then Raihan had been content to let it fester away in the corner of his desk drawer. He knows all the verses by heart, anyway. </p><p>Raihan nudges Leon to scoot over, in favor of wedging himself next to the demon against the small corner. He rests his head against the arch of Leon’s wing, and feels him lean back in response. </p><p>They sit there for a while.</p><p>“Leon,” Raihan says, repeating the same thing he has been for the past week. “Are you okay?”</p><p>Leon is silent.</p><p>“No,” he says finally. “I don’t think I am.”</p><p>Raihan wraps an arm around his shoulder, pulling him closer. “Do you want to talk about it?”</p><p>Leon huffs a laugh as he looks up at the ceiling. “It’s not even that important— it’s stupid.”</p><p>“No, it’s not,” Raihan says, taking in the redness around his boyfriend’s eyes and his wet lashes. “It’s never stupid. What’s wrong?”<br/>
<br/>
“It’s—” Leon cuts off, in favor of using his free wing to gesture instead. It’s just a small movement, but it’s enough to displace a few feathers in a familiar scattering of black ash. “I’m… going to lose these again soon.”</p><p>So it is a part of the molt cycle. Raihan feels a tight fist clench around his heart at the thought of Leon burning his wings back down to their skeleton frame. “I’m so sorry, Lee. I can’t even imagine how painful that must be.” </p><p>Leon shakes his head, “It’s okay. I’ve been through it before and it’s— not as bad as you’d think.” He sighs, wings furling behind his back as he pulls his knees up to his chest. “I kind of prefer them the other way too. It’s better than…” The demon trails off, something unreadable slipping into his expression.</p><p>Being reminded of what you used to be, Raihan’s mind fills in for him. Only with the knowledge that it’s going to be taken away again. “What happened wasn’t your fault.”</p><p>“It wasn’t,” Leon says. “I don’t regret anything I did, and what I did was right. It just happened so suddenly and— I was on the ground before I knew it. Didn’t even warn me beforehand.”</p><p>There’s a flash of memory; of the demon shrugging his fall off in conversation as something he barely remembers. Raihan’s known better for a while now, but he still doesn’t really know what to say.</p><p>“I’m sorry.”</p><p>“It’s okay. I just… wish they’d say something, even after all this time.”</p><p>“... Oh,” Raihan realizes belatedly. “You still love them.”</p><p>Leon lets out a short laugh, “‘Course I do. I was their angel.” </p><p>Raihan looks back down at his family Bible. “... Why? You don’t owe them anything.”</p><p>“I know,” Leon says, now leaning back in to rest his head against Raihan. On instinct, Raihan runs a comforting hand through his hair. “But it’s kind of hard when that’s what you’re made to do— and what you’ve been doing— for the past few billion years prior.”</p><p>It’s not like Raihan can completely relate to Leon’s apparent situation, given the literal presence of divine intervention in it, but the demon’s words still hit close to home. Raihan keeps silent, as he thinks back to chalky hands and shaky pentagram circles, and a young child who didn’t know much about the world besides wanting to please their parents. </p><p>Leon seems to take note of his brooding and sighs, rubbing at his eyes. “It’s fine, Rai, really. I just— get like this sometimes when I molt. It’s probably also partially hormonal.”</p><p>“... You can still change though,” Raihan says. “It takes time, but you can start now. I can help.”</p><p>Leon smiles at him. He’s looking beyond Raihan now, at something much more vast than anything his individual person could ever stand for or encapsulate. His eyes are still wet with unfallen tears, gleaming in the dim light of the bathroom; for a second, Raihan thinks he sees an entire galaxy of stars suspended in the molten gold of his irises.</p><p>“You’re always so kind,” the demon says, but it doesn’t feel like he’s speaking to Raihan— not completely. “And willing to move forward, no matter what others think.”</p><p>“Because I love you,” Raihan says. “Please let me help. You're just beating yourself over the head with the past like this, Lee. ”</p><p>Leon shakes his head, “It’s not that simple, Rai. I can't just—” </p><p>“Tell me what you <em>can</em> do.”</p><p>Leon is silent for a moment.</p><p>“I don’t know,” he says, and Raihan pulls him into his arms.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>haha guess who's back</p><p>with a sequel like i promised. that was originally gonna just be a oneshot but then it got too long. so i had to expand it into two chapters again.<br/>... we've been down this road before havent we.</p><p>welcome to my attempt at writing raihan as a good bf slash therapist that turned into this 7k monster. more action next time promise; hint hint check character tags </p><p>this is meant to be read as an extra few chapters between Eternity in a Second and the ties that bind (follow-up written by the amazing antikytheras!!!!) check out the series below!</p><p>Thanks for reading!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Midnight Falling</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p><em>"My angel help me, feel me<br/>As I am falling with tears for thousand of years lost into sensations and<br/>Ethereal desires—<br/>I am here like everyone and I will stay forever."</em><br/>- Midnight Falling, On Thorns I Lay</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>GOD UGH IM SO SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG TO GET THIS DONE, i had midterms and then finals... but now... school is finally over....... have also been suffering extreme brainrot and general lack of motivation but i finally managed to write this down... god. two months im so so so sorry again hhhh </p><p>long chapter this time with lots of worldbuilding and interwoven plot stuff and leon being emotionally repressed... per the usual. i hope u guys like therapy cuz hoo boy there's gonna be a lot of it. </p><p>also it got too long again so i had to split it. Sorry</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“... That’s kinda bad, innit.”</p><p>“I know,” Raihan says, reclining back against his chair. “It’s been rough, mate.”</p><p>“Tell me about it.” Piers’ dark eye circles stand out even against the static-y Facetime call and the poorly-lit backdrop of his dressing room. “‘ve still got nine outta twenty cities left to go.” </p><p>“Just down a couple of Red Bulls and get it up and over with.”</p><p>“You know caffeine doesn’t work on me anymore,” Piers says, edgy as always, and squints a bit at the background behind Raihan. “What are you, at Starbucks?”</p><p>Raihan holds up his latte. “Guilty as charged. Grande vanilla soy latte with java chip.”</p><p>“Disgusting.”</p><p>“As you’ve said many times,” Raihan sighs and takes a sip of his carefully concocted abomination. “For real though, you’re doing great. I’ve seen the stuff that was uploaded online.”</p><p>“I’m nauseous already. And ‘s not much, I’m just givin’ people what they turned up for. I get riled up when they do— nice to just be able to let go and have a wild time, yeah?” </p><p>They both know it’s an understatement. Even just from the clips Raihan’s seen, he can tell Piers does more than just giving his crowd what they want— every concert is an experience that has his fans screaming for an encore after. Piers, of course, never does any.</p><p>“Yeah,” Raihan says. “Just save some fame for the rest of us, a’ight?”</p><p>“Sure, after all of your pre-roll ads I have to sit through every time I want to watch a Youtube vid,” Piers snorts, “I could’ve written a better jingle than the one they paired for your moisturizer campaign too. A major is a rookie move.”</p><p>“I have no idea what that means,” Raihan admits. “<em>But</em>— if you want, I could recite my monologue for inspiration right now. <em>Hi</em>, I’m Raihan, and when I wake up in the morning I’m always looking to start my da—”</p><p>“I will pay you twice the amount you got for that to shut up,” Piers says, but the corners of his mouth twitch upwards. “Enough about me. How’s Leon holding up?”</p><p>Raihan lets himself pause for a moment. “Not the best,” he says finally. “It’s— been pretty rough for him lately. I think having his wings back just reminds him of his time as an a— before falling— but he doesn’t really like talking about it. He’s just kind of despondent.”</p><p>“Damn. So he misses it?”</p><p>“Probably,” Raihan says. “Or something along those lines. I caught him reading the Bible the other day, and he said something ‘bout still loving the ones who cast him out or whatever. Didn’t sound like he regrets being thrown out though.” He rubs at his face with both hands, “... ‘m worried about him, Piers.”</p><p>“I know, mate,” Piers says. “You’ve been doin’ your best to help Leon out, but it could also be majorly influenced by his cycle and, uh, demon hormones. Some things are just outta your control.”</p><p>“It just feels like I could be doing more,” Raihan mumbles out from behind his hands. “—Wanna help him out emotionally, but I don't know how when I can’t even begin to understand where he’s coming from.”</p><p>“Because you’re not meant to. Falling sounds like it's the worst thing that can happen to someone like him, so of course Leon’s gonna be banged up about it.” Piers sighs. “Nothing you can do at this point besides keep ‘im company when he needs it.”</p><p>“I guess. You've been in touch with Marnie lately?”</p><p>The singer cracks a smile at the mention of his sister. “Yeah, daily. She hasn’t been wrecking too much havoc ‘round town, has she?”<br/>
<br/>
“I’ve been looking out for her, yeah, but you know she’s got a mad poker face on at all times. Looks like she’s been doin’ pretty well staying at Gloria’s place and getting shit done with the gangs in your neighborhood.”</p><p>“She’s a natural,” Piers says, a bit of amusement and pride in his tone. “Still kind of wish I could’ve taken Marns on tour with me, but Team Yell’ll take care of her until then. Always rallied behind her more than me, anyway.”</p><p>“Pays to have a devoted fanbase, I guess.”</p><p>“... Speaking of which,” Piers cocks an eyebrow, “I’ve been watchin’ a bunch of teenagers behind you trying to work up the courage to approach you for the past ten minutes. Might wanna address that before one of ‘em does something stupid.”</p><p>“Huh, really?” Raihan tilts his head to the side so he can peer at the background of his own call. </p><p>Sure enough, there’s a small friend group of five huddled together on the far side of the coffee shop, talking among themselves and shooting glances at him over their own drink orders. It looks like the girls are doing most of the gossiping— which isn’t unexpected, considering the model side of his career— but the two guys they have with them are looking pretty interested in his direction as well. </p><p>Raihan turns back to his phone. “I dunno. Should I?”</p><p>“Up to you.”</p><p>“A’ight.”</p><p>It’s not like he has anything to lose in particular, so Raihan puts Piers on mute. He turns to look over his shoulder, lowering his sunglasses slightly and slipping into a well-practiced grin when he catches the gaze of one of the girls and waves them over. </p><p>“Sorry, didn’t see you guys at first,” Raihan says, as he watches the group of friends practically trip over themselves to get to him. “—Woah, careful there. What’s up?”</p><p>“Uh, we’re just big fans in general,” one of the girls says. “Could we get a selfie or something?”</p><p>“‘Course,” Raihan says, “‘m kinda on a call here though, sorry. Would any of your phones work?” </p><p>“Holy shit,” Another one says, passing her phone over. “Is that Piers?”</p><p>Piers, to his credit, throws up a devil horns sign on-screen, and Raihan snickers at the awestruck look on all of their faces. He snaps a couple of group selfies with a well-practiced tap of his thumb before handing the phone back to the group. “Can you tag me in it later so I can give a shout-out?”</p><p>“Is Leon around?” One of the guys asks, “His charity stream was lit.”</p><p>“Nah, he’s at home. I’ll pass it on to him,” Raihan says with a wink. “He’s mad proud about streaming for twenty-four hours even if he was practically dead by the end of it.” It’s not exactly the truth since Leon had just called it quits for the sake of maintaining his human facade— Raihan's seen him go at building his own personalized version of Hell in Minecraft for five days straight one time. </p><p>The kids still look a bit in awe when they leave, whispering among themselves about getting to meet and talk to him, and Raihan turns back to unmute his phone.</p><p>“Cute kids,” Piers is tuning his bass now, feet propped on the dressing table. “Did you give them a signature too?”<br/>
<br/>
“Selfies <em>are </em>my signature,” Raihan snorts and sips at his coffee, making a face at how cold it’s gotten. That’s on him. “They were nice though, polite. You got anything going on after this?”</p><p>“Just another sound-check— which reminds me that I should probably get going.” Piers twists at a few knobs on the instrument. “You an’ Leon gonna be okay?”</p><p>“We’ll work it out. Hopefully by the time you come back.”</p><p>It’s hard to see clearly on the small screen, but Piers’ expression looks a bit tighter— a bit more strained— than usual. “Hopefully.”</p>
<hr/><p>There’s still a bit of time after Piers hangs up and before when he’d told Leon he’d be home back by, so Raihan opts to nurse his cold coffee while simultaneously wishing it was something that burned a bit more going down.</p><p>It feels weird, sitting here in the middle of a Starbucks, when his entire domestic life has been nothing less of a fever dream for the past two weeks. There hadn’t been that big of a change since Raihan had found Leon reading on their bathroom floor, eyes filled with a distant light as he spoke of a Creator who will never love him back, but the demon still refuses to even just elaborate a bit more on what happened. Instead, he’s continued keeping to himself, maybe even more often than usual, brooding in private and waving Raihan’s concerns off with another light laugh and smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes.</p><p>It’s… Raihan doesn’t know what it is. Leon is clearly <em>hurting</em>, clearly still hung up over whatever he did to warrant his fall from grace, and clearly expecting to just wait it out until he’s emotionally stable enough to bottle everything back up as he has for the past millennium. He doesn’t want to think or talk about it around Raihan, and if that isn’t the <em>one</em> thing that’s driving Raihan crazy right now— because he can’t <em>help </em>if Leon won’t tell him what he needs help with.</p><p>But maybe it’s also for good reason, since Raihan isn’t entirely sure if he can help to begin with, when Leon’s issues seem beyond what a human like him is capable of understanding. But that isn’t going to stop him from <em>trying </em>at least, because Raihan just can’t sit here and watch his boyfriend mope and blame himself for something that was clearly out of his control.</p><p>Leon is just so bright and good and— <em> god</em>, Raihan loves him <em>so </em>much, and watching the demon tear himself open from the inside like this brings up a sort of gut-wrenching helplessness that makes him scrunch his brows together and down his coffee in one go. </p><p>He’s half-considering reaching out to his therapist again, just to see if she has anything to say about how to drill it into a billion-something-year-old divine entity’s mind that you’re here for him, even if he doesn’t necessarily see or believe it. It’s probably not the material she’s used to working with, but maybe they can invent like a… grounding technique for a holy angel or something.</p><p>Just as he's thinking about dialing her up for once, Raihan's phone buzzes with a new message.</p><p><b>Leon:</b> <em>dinner?</em></p><p>Raihan cracks a small smile, and unlocks the screen to reply.</p><p><b>Raihan: </b> <em> whatever ur feeling baby </em></p><p><b>Leon: </b> <em> :D!!! </em></p><p>… He’s so cute. </p><p>It’s also about time for him to get going anyway. Raihan reacts to Leon’s message with a heart emoji, followed by another text that he’ll be home soon. Then, he's getting up to throw his cup out, with half a mind to take a piss before the long trek across town back to his flat.</p><p>The group of friends is still hanging around at the back of the shop, and Raihan throws them a small, impartial wave as he passes by to get to the restroom.</p><p>The bathroom is small, with a few urinals and stalls lined up against the tiled wall and single ceiling light. He chooses one offhandedly and goes to wash his hands at the small sink in the corner once he’s finished. </p><p>He’s just about done drying his hands off when there’s a knock on the door. </p><p>“Um, hi, Raihan— can I talk to you for a moment?”</p><p>Raihan has to hold back a wince at the sight of one of the teenagers poking his head inside the bathroom. Definitely not the most awkward fan encounter he’s had before but— please, kid, wait for him to finish up first at least. Instead, though, he works his mouth into another easygoing smile and nods. “Hey, sure. Could you just wait outside for a bit?”</p><p>“Oh, no worries,” the kid says, gold eyes bright under fluorescent lighting, “This’ll only take a second.”</p><p>“Uh, I don’t think that's what I sai—” </p><p>The kid steps fully into view, door closing behind him, and the room’s temperature drops in a way he’s all too familiar with.</p><p>Raihan’s words die on his lips.</p><p>It’s not possible— at least, it <em>shouldn’t </em>be— when Leon is the only one who’s ever shown up out of the blue like this. Raihan takes in a deep breath and forces a grin back onto his face like he isn’t on the border of freaking the fuck out right now. It’s fine. This is fine.</p><p>“<em>Actually</em>,” he says, stuffing his still-damp hands into his hoodie and trying to shoulder his way past the person standing before him. “I just remembered I had something really important to do, <em> so </em>sorry, gotta run—”</p><p>Maybe if he doesn’t look at him he can get by with—</p><p>“Yeah, no. That’s not happening,” the kid says.</p><p>The bathroom light flickers once.</p><p>He barely has time to react before Raihan feels something wrap around his waist and yank him backward<em>, hard</em>. He hits the ground, the impact knocking the breath out of him, and then the kid is walking towards him and Raihan can only think, <em>holy fuck,</em> as he sits himself up and scrambles back from his approaching attacker. He backs into the bathroom wall and Raihan freezes in place, pulse pounding in his ears as he stares up at the familiar sight of slit pupils.</p><p>“’m kind of disappointed,” the demon says, unbothered by the mass of shadows that are slowly spreading across half of the room and making its way towards Raihan with every time the ceiling light cuts out. “I mean, I don’t know what I was expecting, but like— really? An e-boy, of all things?”</p><p>“What are you talking about,” Raihan manages out, huddled against the wall. “What do you want from me?”</p><p>“Bait, I guess. ‘S not that big of a deal.” The kid shrugs and looks at him with large yellow eyes. “Try not to choke your own tongue, okay?”</p><p>The light goes out with a buzz of static, and Raihan squeezes his eyes shut and draws a quick cross over both his shoulders. “Leon,” he calls out, before whatever is in the dark can take him. “<em>Leon. </em> Hel—”</p><p>The bathroom door slams open, and Leon walks in, eyes glowing white and a whirlwind of black feathers in his wake. He points a finger at the ceiling, turning the light back on and forcing the darkness to abate, before making his way over to Raihan and kneeling down beside him. </p><p>His boyfriend’s expression is pinched with concern as he cups at Raihan’s face with both hands, tilting his head to a side and inspecting them. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner, Rai. Are you okay— are you hurt?”</p><p>“No fair,” The demon says from behind the two of them, and before Raihan can kick his brain into action in time to reply. “I was just teasing.”</p><p>Leon rolls his eyes, standing back up and turning to face the demon.</p><p>“That wasn’t funny, Hop.”</p><p>Something clicks in the back of Raihan’s mildly concussed brain, even if he can’t necessarily put it into words right now.</p><p>“I wasn’t <em>actually </em>going to hurt him,” the kid pouts, now back to acting much more his age rather than an infernal being bent on dragging Raihan to hell. “I just wanted to see what he was like after all that you’ve told me!”</p><p>Leon sighs and Raihan blanches when he sees the contrastingly wide, affectionate grin on his face. “You should’ve told me you were coming. I would’ve at least tried to pick you up— or find you.”</p><p>“I wanted to keep it a surprise,” Hop grins back, before he’s throwing himself into Leon’s arms and nearly throwing the angel off balance. “I missed you, Lee!”</p><p>Leon laughs as he steadies himself, wrapping his arms back around his brother in return and burying his face into locks of dark hair. “Missed you too, Hopscotch. You’ve grown so much since last time— an inch and a quarter, huh?”</p><p>“Yup! How did you know?”</p><p>“How could I not? Of course I’d notice!”</p><p>“What the fuck,” Raihan says, from his spot on the bathroom floor.</p><p>Leon turns back to face him, eyes and grin brighter than he’s ever seen for the past few weeks. “Raihan, this is my little brother, Hop! I’ve talked about him before, remember?”</p><p>“I recall,” Raihan says weakly. As does the giant bruise on his ass he’s pretty sure he can feel forming. “Nice to meet you, kid.”</p><p>Hop grins, somewhat cheekily, like he wasn’t just bodily assaulting Raihan in the bathroom moments ago. “Same! Lee’s told me tons about you, and my vessel follows you on all his social media accounts. He’s a real big fan of your content, so I’ve wanted to meet you for a while!”</p><p>“Raihan makes great promos,” Leon says, at the same time Raihan asks, “Your vessel?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Hop says, as Leon breaks their hug to go and help Raihan up. He rocks back on his heels, beaming at them with a face that isn’t his. “He’s my first Ouija board summon! Did it with a bunch of friends during their sleepover together last week. I latched on ‘cause I heard them talking about Lee’s live streams before the session.”</p><p>“Latched on…?”</p><p>“Possession,” Leon offers. “Most demons can’t materialize physical forms on their own.”</p><p>“... You possessed a child.” Raihan is going to have a stroke. “You ran off with some random fourteen-year old’s body.”</p><p>Hop frowns, “And?”</p><p>“Don’t mind him,” Leon says, patting Raihan gently on the back. “He’s just grumpy that he got his ass handed to him by my little brother. Are you doing okay?”</p><p>“You say that like I had a fighting chance in the first place,” Raihan mutters, but leans into his boyfriend’s touch. “And ‘m fine, just got a giant bruise on my ass for my struggles. No biggie.”</p><p>Leon looks somewhat apologetic for his brother’s actions, pouting up at him with large golden eyes. “I’m sorry. Hop was just playing, but humans can be surprisingly fragile. Do you need me to make it better?”</p><p>“... That’d be nice, actually.” Leon kisses him, and the dull ache in his rear soothes itself immediately. Raihan hums in content as he wraps an arm around the demon’s waist and goe in to lengthen the kiss when he tries to pull away. “Don’t think it worked— kiss me longer.”</p><p>Leon gives him another quick peck. “Better?”</p><p>“Yeah. Are <em> you </em> okay though?” Raihan checks him over in turn. Leon’s wearing a shirt for the first time since his molt started; most likely as a precaution in case there's an audience to his rush to get to Raihan's side. He's somehow managed to conceal his wings as well, with only the small specks of dust on the back of his shirt and the few black feathers on the tiled bathroom floor serving as tell-tale signs. It shows his condition is getting better, at least.</p><p>“I’m fine, Rai,” Leon giggles and bats his hands off before Raihan can turn him around to get a full view of his back. “Not in front of my brother.”</p><p>“Yeah, gross.”</p><p>Raihan pulls back, shooting an accusing look at Hop. “You don’t get to say that, body-snatcher.”</p><p>Hop shrugs, “I do when my brother’s smooching an e-boy.” </p><p>“I’m not an e-boy, kid.”</p><p>“Why do you dress like one then?”</p><p>“I swear to—”</p><p>“Language,” Leon says, even if he looks like he’s enjoying this immensely. “We should get going too— the curry’ll be getting cold. Hop, you’ll join us for dinner, right?”</p><p>Hop beams, bounding back over to latch onto Leon’s arm. “Course! My parents don’t expect me back ‘till eight anyways.”</p><p>“This is so weird,” Raihan mutters. “This is so weird.”</p><p>Leon pats him on the back again. “Family, right,” he says brightly. Raihan tries not to bury his face in his hands.</p>
<hr/><p>Dinner goes well, for the most part, considering Hop spends most of it scarfing down Leon’s curry and tittering about finally being able to taste <em>human </em>food for himself. As it turns out, it’s his first time maneuvering a body all by himself, but he’d stuck it out for the sole reason of dropping by to greet and reconnect with his older brother. </p><p>Raihan still… doesn’t really know what to think of the fact that he has the abducted body of some poor teenager sitting on their living room couch and spooning vanilla ice cream into his mouth for dessert. He’s sort of tempted to call the police— or an exorcist, or just really, any authority at all— but Leon had assured him that Hop’s presence did no harm to the body, and that the kid would just be left feeling a little dazed and woozy once the contract expired over the next few days.</p><p>Leon’s mood also looks like it’s finally picked up, now that he’s been reunited with his little brother; so Raihan resigns himself to keeping quiet about his moral standards for a bit longer if only to make sure his boyfriend is feeling better.</p><p>Still, he can’t help the question that comes up while cuddling into Leon’s side. “... That wouldn’t have happened to me, right?”</p><p>“What, being possessed?” Leon looks back at him, his own ice cream spoon halfway to his lips. </p><p>“Yeah. Would you have...”</p><p>Leon pats him on the head. “You were too cute for me to possess,” he says, grin wide and shit-eating. “And you’re not my type anyway.”</p><p>“You have a type?”</p><p>“Uh, yeah. Male, early 20s, athletic, attractive, somewhere around 1.7 meters.” His boyfriend shrugs. “Feels most comfortable.”</p><p>Raihan stares. “So you didn’t possess me because I’m too <em>tall</em>. That’s only marginally reassuring.”</p><p>“I know.”</p><p>“It’s not <em>that </em>big of a deal,” Hop says loudly, his own spoon hanging from his mouth. He really <em>does </em>feel like a spitting image of Leon, just from their shared mannerisms alone. “I’ll return the body when I’m due back home in a few days— Victor’s been needing an extra hand with work.”</p><p>“There’s a demon named <em>Victor? </em>” Raihan’s due for a lot of revelations about demon culture, apparently.</p><p>Hop glares, “Don’t say his name! He’s really busy tryin’ to fill in Lee’s shoes, he won’t have time to drop in.”</p><p>“Yeah, but what kind of a name is Vic—” Raihan cuts off, gagging a bit as Leon stuffs a bite of ice cream into his mouth. </p><p>Leon has the decency to look at least somewhat apologetic at the offended look Raihan shoots him afterward. “Sorry, Rai, name-summoning by humans is kind of a thing for demons. I’d introduce you two, but he probably has a bit of a thing against me now considering how much cleaning up he had to do after me when I left.”</p><p>“No worries,” Raihan gums out from around the spoon. “Though, I am suddenly learning a <em> lot </em>more about your backstory than I have in the past two years. Didn’t know Hell was such a stuck-in-the-mud bureaucracy.”</p><p>Leon’s expression closes off again— as it’s wont to do, mouth slightly downturned and a small furrow between his brows— though he relaxes back to normal almost immediately as if remembering Hop’s presence. “I don’t like talking about it, yeah. Not a fan of how things are run back home, nor the amount of attention I got.”</p><p>Raihan blinks, “You were a celebrity?”</p><p>“More like a torchbearer,” Leon rubs the back of his neck. “Sort of a big deal, to be the first angel to fall in a couple billion years and all. It’s why I went by Champion back home; since everyone was sort of expecting me to model demon behavior.”</p><p>Raihan flashes to the time he had walked in on Leon watching TV from the carpet because he had fallen off the couch and couldn’t be bothered to climb back up. Model demon behavior. Alright then.</p><p>Almost to further prove his point, his boyfriend's making grabby-hand motions at the spoon, so Raihan hands it back so he can finish his ice cream. </p><p>“He has a whole PR team,” Hop adds in. “And a secretary. And a bunch of other important demons to tell him what to do and make sure he hasn’t wandered off somewhere and can’t find his way back.”</p><p>“Isn’t that what he’s doing right no—”</p><p>“I’m here <em>willingly</em>,” Leon grumbles and finishes the last bite of his dessert. “Since I abdicated the position to the current champ. I like being with Rai here much more— and eating ice cream together.”</p><p>“Ice cream is good,” Hop agrees, as Raihan tries his best not to gush at Leon’s words. “We don’t get anything like this back home. Can I have more?”</p><p>Leon nods, getting up to grab their two empty bowls for a refill. Raihan follows him into the kitchen obediently, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend’s waist as he watches him dole out more vanilla ice cream. Out of habit, he blows a few raspberries against the back of his ear. Leon lets out a small giggle, tilting his head to one side to give him more access, and Raihan follows it up by trailing light kisses down his nape. </p><p>“You’re cute,” he mumbles out against warm skin.</p><p>Leon leans back, small fluffs of purple hair tickling Raihan’s nose. “I know.” He gives him a small nuzzle, before angling his face to press their mouths together, short and chaste. </p><p>He tastes a bit smoky, and sweet from the dessert he’d been eating, and Raihan thinks about how he <em>still</em> loves the feeling of Leon’s soft lips against his even after all this time. It’s addicting, in all the best ways, and he’s content to just stand there for a moment and fill the silence around them with nothing but the gentle sounds of their mouths meeting. </p><p>“Doin’ okay?”</p><p>“Mhm,” Leon closes his eyes and tips his head back to rest against Raihan’s shoulder. Raihan runs a lazy hand through the longer strands of his hair, coaxing out another sound of content from the demon. “I’m glad the two of you are getting along.”</p><p>“Barely,” Raihan snorts, and Leon laughs a bit again. “Still haven’t forgiven him for nearly giving me a concussion in a public bathroom. Rowdy lil’ thing of a brother you’ve got there.”</p><p>“He is,” Leon says. “Think I missed having him around— I’d forgotten how much he still takes up after me. It…” He trails off. “It’s nice, seeing him again.”</p><p>“I know, babe,” Raihan says, still rubbing at his waist comfortingly. “How are the wings doing, by the way? You haven’t taken your shirt off since we came back.”</p><p>He feels Leon still against him, so Raihan keeps his gaze fixed on the tub of ice cream before him. </p><p>“... Privacy, you know,” Leon says slowly. “I can’t just walk around shirtless while my little brother’s around.”</p><p>“Makes sense. Aren’t they tender from all the chafing though?”</p><p>“Yeah. I can just wait it out.” Leon goes back to scooping the ice cream, brushing a black feather off of his free shoulder in the meantime. “Can you take these out to Hop? I’m going to give Dura his dinner.” He doesn’t meet his gaze as he holds the two bowls out to him. </p><p>Raihan takes both without batting an eye. “Sure.”</p><p> </p><p>To the surprise of absolutely no one, Hop is waiting for him when he re-enters the living room. He hasn't budged from his spot, aside from settling into a more slouched position as he scrolls through his vessel's phone with mild interest, but the demon's gaze is on him the moment he steps back into view. Raihan tries his best to ignore the way the kid’s yellow eyes are boring into him as he sets one bowl down in front of him, and plops back down onto the couch with Leon’s one. He takes a bite of ice cream and lets it melt completely on his tongue and down his throat before speaking.</p><p>“So, we need to talk.”</p><p>Instead of replying, however, Hop just sits up and scoops his bowl back into his lap again.</p><p>“Just so you know,” Hop says quietly before Raihan can make a snarky comment about being his senior by virtue of, uh, dating his billion-year-old older brother. Something like that. “If you do anything to hurt my brother— anything to break his heart, I will flay you alive and wear your skinsuit like a jacket."</p><p>“Eat your sundae, kid,” Raihan says, kind of tiredly, because he really <em>doesn’t </em>want to think about being dragged down to Hell and back right now. “You don’t have to worry about me hurting Lee; that’s not what I wanted to talk about.” He’s not really into eating his feelings, but with everything that’s been going on Raihan decides, <em>fuck it</em>, and takes an even bigger bite. “Your brother’s been acting up.”</p><p>Hop frowns, sitting up a bit more, the previous wariness gone almost instantly. “What do you mean?”</p><p>Raihan knows not to expect any sort of dialogue to go unheard, given Leon’s ever omnipresence in the flat, but he can’t help himself asking anyway. He keeps his voice low, leaning in so he can shield them a bit from where Leon’s currently feeding Duraludon by the dining table. “What do you know about molting?”</p><p>“Lee’s molting?”</p><p>“Yeah, for a couple of weeks now. It’s mostly done, I think, but...” Raihan trails off, rubbing the back of his neck gingerly. “I was wondering if there’s anything more I can do for him. Get his mind off the whole process since it’s pretty— well,” he waves a flippant hand. </p><p>Hop’s frown deepens. “I don’t know. He seemed fine when it happened back home… I don’t remember Lee being much different besides his wings and all. Is something up?”</p><p>“I packed you some curry to bring back, Hop,” Leon says, standing behind them. “It’s a quarter to eight already.”</p><p>“Holy <em>fuck</em>,” Raihan clutches at his chest while Hop turns around to look at his brother. The younger demon’s brow is furrowed, mouth pinched the same way Leon’s gets whenever he’s concerned. </p><p>“Are you really molting, Lee? Why didn’t you tell me?”</p><p>Leon tilts his head, a well-practiced smile on his lips. “Yeah, sorry, my bad. I didn’t think it was that important. I’m close to the end of the cycle anyways— you know how messy it gets sometimes.”</p><p>“Yeah,” Hop says and wrinkles his nose. “Ash and dead stuff. Super gross.”</p><p>“Super gross,” Leon agrees, ruffling his little brother’s hair. “Don’t worry about it, Hopscotch, I’m doing just fine. Already feeling well now that I got the worst over with.”</p><p>Hop sags with relief. “Really? I was worried there for a sec, ‘cause Raihan said you weren’t feeling too good…”</p><p>“‘m all better now that I can see your goofy face around,” Leon grins and forgoes the hair ruffling to instead wrap his brother up in a headlock. “How can I not when my favorite brother comes to visit?”</p><p>Hop laughs, squirming to get free from the hold. “Silly, I’m your <em> only </em> brother!”</p><p>“That you are,” Leon says, beaming. There’s something tender in his eyes, a look that Raihan’s only seen directed at himself before. At the same time, it’s more wistful than he’s used to, a bit more longing and sad. It’s enough for him to get a bit of a feeling that he shouldn’t be seeing this right now, and so Raihan promptly busies himself with checking his social media while the brothers mock-wrestle next to him.</p><p>Hop gives up after a while, resigning himself to his fate and flopping down against the couch best as he can while still in Leon’s hold. He looks down at the floor, and kicks his feet a few times against the couch. “... Do you like it here, Lee?”</p><p>Leon pauses, fist frozen from where he’d been playfully grinding it against his head. “... I do,” he says. </p><p>Hop nods, eyes still downcast. “Come visit sometime soon, okay?”</p><p>Raihan can feel his boyfriend’s gaze on him, boring into him in the silence that comes before his answer, but he doesn’t stop the scroll of his thumb through his feed.</p><p>“I will,” Leon promises quietly and eventually, and Raihan keeps his eyes on his screen. </p>
<hr/><p>Hop leaves shortly afterward, with a promise to drop by sometime again before he leaves. Raihan’s still trying to wrap his head around the fact that the demon has 8 p.m. curfew— though he supposes it’s all for the sake of maintaining his human facade until he gets called back to Hell. Hop had also given him the kid’s number, in case of emergencies should anything happen during the rest of Leon’s molt.</p><p>It’s when Leon’s taken to washing the dishes that Raihan finally forces himself to confront the demon, leaning nonchalantly against the kitchen door frame as he waits for him to finish. </p><p>There’s a hollow sort of feeling in his stomach— a sense of dread that comes with the calm before the storm. Leon is careful and controlled in his movements as he loads the dishwasher, every dish pointedly placed into the rack without so much of a wasted action, and really, they’re just playing a game of chicken at this point.</p><p>Raihan counts down to ten in his head, and takes a deep breath when he reaches zero.</p><p>“... You can take your shirt off now, babe.” </p><p>In hindsight, that definitely sounded better in his head. </p><p>Leon doesn’t skip a beat in placing another dish on the rack. “I told you already, I’m fine with it on.”</p><p>Raihan kicks off from the doorframe, making his way over to his boyfriend. “You don’t have to hide it anymore Leon, your brother’s gone back to his—uh,— <em> host </em> family for the night.” He stops behind him and reaches a hand out to play idly with the strands of purple hair hanging past the demon’s shoulder. “... Let me see.”</p><p>Leon hesitates for a moment, before sagging. He dries his hands off with a towel, and in the next moment they’re sitting on their bed together, Leon already starting to tug the shirt over his head. He slips it off completely, broad back muscles rippling from the movement, and Raihan runs a gentle hand down the length of his spine. The demon hums as he enjoys the sensation, and then shudders as he sprouts his wings. </p><p>He’s seen them before— this morning, actually— but Raihan’s gut still clenches at how big of a difference there’s been since then. Leon’s feathers have started falling out in clumps, the skin around his limbs growing charred and scabbed, previously healed bone breaks fracturing apart again at the slightest motion. There’s a slight odor in the air now that they’ve materialized, acrid like burning flesh, and Raihan’s finger comes away with something that stains darker and redder when he traces a finger along the span line. </p><p>“Does it hurt?”</p><p>“... A bit,” Leon admits. “Stings… Like hot and prickly.”</p><p>Raihan presses a soft kiss to the ball of each joint, never mind the taste of dark ash on his lips when he pulls away. “I’m sorry. Would painkillers help?”</p><p>“Probably not— or not anything you can find in this realm.” His wings flutter and scatter a bit more dust over the sheets and Raihan’s lap. “Like I said before, I’m less bothered by the physical and more the…” Leon gestures, “Mental. Stuff.”</p><p>“...And you’ve never told him about any of that?”</p><p>Leon tucks his knees under his chin. “I really didn't appreciate you dragging my little brother into this, Raihan.”</p><p>“He’s more than a couple thousand years old— I’d hardly count that as little.”</p><p>“It’s always been like this. I can’t talk about this with him. With anyone.”</p><p>“Leon—”</p><p>“Dynamics don't <em>change </em>that easily, Rai,” Leon snaps, voice sharp for a second, and Raihan knows— for one terrifying second— that he’s finally touched a nerve. But there’s no clap of thunder, no drop in temperature to signal a change for the worse, and Leon just settles back down with another low sigh, one hand covering his face from view. “I just don’t want him worrying about me.”</p><p>“Mate, he threatened to skin me alive and wear me as a jacket if I ever broke your heart. I’d count that as worrying about you.”</p><p>“Sorry. I’ll mention that to him.”</p><p>“Hey, I didn’t mean it as anything bad,” Raihan tucks his fingers under Leon’s wings, rubbing at the knot he finds there. “Kid’s got spunk, I’ll give him that. But he’s— been— worried about you this whole time, Lee. Maybe you should talk to him.”</p><p>Leon lets out a long exhale as he lets him work at the knots in his back. “It’s. I don’t know if I can.”</p><p>“Why not?”</p><p>There’s a long silence, interrupted only by the small scuffling of wings from Leon covers his face with his hands again. Raihan keeps silent, now changing to rubbing circles into the small of his back instead as he waits for Leon to respond. </p><p>“You don’t have to explain if you don’t want to, Leon. I’ll be here.”</p><p>Leon hesitates again, and Raihan doesn’t miss the slight tremor in his frame when the demon finally speaks. “... I’m scared.”</p><p>“Of what?”</p><p>“Of—” Leon keeps his face hidden in his hands, even when Raihan crawls around to sit them face-to-face on the bed. “Everything. Telling him the truth. Hop looks up to me so much— all of them do, as some sort of champion for falling as I did. But I’m— not,” his voice cracks, small and wavering, “I’m a fraud, Rai.”</p><p>“No, you’re not, mate,” Raihan says. “Don’t say that about yourself.”</p><p>“How can I not be?” Leon says bitterly. “Everyone thinks I’m a messiah but I get this emotional and upset just by being reminded of my wings. I’m supposed to be a demon, but I miss heaven.” He curls into a smaller ball, wings shielding his head from view, almost as if to hide him from the rest of the world. Raihan feels the pit in his stomach widen even further at the sight. “... I’m supposed to be an angel, but I love you.”</p><p>For some reason, there’s no moderate weather event nor electrical outage to accompany the demon’s emotional downpour this time. It’s somehow worse, though, because now there’s nothing to distract Raihan from the immense wave of helplessness he feels from just sitting before his boyfriend. “Oh, Leon.”</p><p>“I don’t know what I am anymore,” Leon says quietly. “And I don’t know if I’m strong enough to find out, but… I don’t want Hop—or you— to think less of me.”</p><p>That hits him hard. Raihan leans forward, brushing the demon's burning wings out of the way as he coaxes his boyfriend to uncurl himself from his ball; pries his hands away from his face gently. Leon looks back at him, eyes red and a small tremble to his bottom lip. </p><p>“I would never think that, Lee,” Raihan says, cupping at his face. There’s a spark of anger— at himself, mostly— because Raihan'd been so caught up on trying to accommodate his boyfriend’s whole mess of divine trauma and PTSD that he hadn’t even stopped to consider if that’s the sort of closure he needs. “And neither would Hop. You’re the bravest and strongest person—demon— we know.”</p><p>“I’m not,” Leon sniffles in response. “You are, though. You stood up to your parents and I can’t even bring myself to hate mine.”</p><p>“After spending a good half of my life with them and a shit ton of therapy, yeah,” Raihan swipes a thumb over Leon’s cheek. “But you’ve spent <em>billions </em>of years being an angel, and only a thousand as a demon— and you <em>still </em>managed to break free of all that… Do you know how fucking strong you have to be to do that?”</p><p>“... Very?” Leon manages a small watery smile.</p><p>“<em>Very</em>,” Raihan affirms. “I’m so proud of you for sticking by your beliefs this whole time. I’m sorry I didn’t see that until now, babe.” </p><p>Leon leans in a bit more, and Raihan reciprocates. The press of their lips is soft, gentle, and then he’s easing the demon down, laying him on top of the bed and propping himself up on his elbows over him. It’s a familiar movement; mouths moving against each other like clockwork until Leon tugs lightly on his locs as a signal for air. </p><p>“I want to change though,” Leon says against his lips. “I— you’ve done so much for me, Rai. I don’t want to let it go to waste.”</p><p>“You won’t,” Raihan says back. “I wanted to do all those things for you— still do. You don’t have to force yourself to do anything, love. It’s okay to be selfish.” He cracks a small grin, “It’s okay to just be you.”</p><p>Leon looks like he’s about to cry again, so Raihan rests his forehead against his, and waits for him to wrap his arms around his neck. “We’ll work on it,” he promises. “Slowly— step by step. At whatever pace makes you comfortable. Set boundaries, have heart-to-hearts, be honest with one another. Let me make this good for you, Lee. Okay?”</p><p>Leon nods, only slightly hesitant. He unfurls his wings against the bed, pulling him down even more, and, as the demon shields the world from their view in a curtain of black feathers, Raihan lets him.</p><p> </p><p>It’s later, when they’re both undressed and tangled in the bedsheets and Raihan’s watching Leon thumb through the pages of his family bible again that his boyfriend finally speaks up. </p><p>“... I want to go.”<br/>
<br/>
Raihan blinks, sitting up from where he’d been resting his head against Leon’s thigh. “Where?”</p><p>Leon keeps his eyes on the Bible. His face is carefully blank, mouth stuck in a thin line, and wings tucked behind him, emotions belied only the slightly colder air in the room. “Home. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, Rai.”</p><p>At least it explains the lack of a temperature drop from earlier, Raihan thinks, even if it feels like his throat is closing up right now. Because Leon <em>had </em>been keeping his true feelings from him. But that sort of thought process is neither helpful nor healthy, so he just takes a deep breath— or a few— before answering. “How long?” </p><p>Vaguely, he hates how unsteady his voice comes out all the same.</p><p>“It—a while now,” Leon says, and Raihan can hear the same waver in his own voice. “Maybe since. The second week.”</p><p>“Oh,” Raihan says. “I’m sor—“</p><p>“Don’t,” Leon says softly, “It’s not you, Rai, please.” He closes the book, the line he’s worked his mouth into tightening. “I thought… I could wait it out. That I just wasn’t used to molting in the human world, and that I could get it over with just as quickly as before. But it’s—different here, there are so many humans and I keep being reminded of why I f—”</p><p>He cuts off again, rethinking his words. "You said to be honest earlier... so I wanted to be honest."</p><p>“No, I get it,” Raihan says, though it comes out as more of a choked warble than anything coherent. He takes another deep breath, holds it for five, and lets it out. “I get it, Lee. It’s what you need.”</p><p>Leon looks back up at him. This time, there’s a crack in his expression, a break in the easygoing facade Raihan knows he puts up around him and— everyone in general. There's that same wistful gaze again, the one he'd seen Leon direct at his younger brother earlier this evening, but this time he can see that it’s a bit different than what he gets on his end. It's more like how Piers had looked over their Facetime call, when the singer's gone weeks without seeing Marnie— when he's missing family— and, well, that explains a lot about why Raihan hadn't been able to register it the first time around.</p><p>... That hurts, a bit more than he lets on. </p><p>“Hop being here made me realize how much I missed him. But I— I don’t want to leave you, and I don’t want you to think that I’ve taken you for granted—“</p><p>“You <em> know </em> that’s not true.” Raihan reaches over to place a hand over Leon’s. The demon doesn’t pull away but regards it warily with slit pupils. “You know how worried I’ve been for you since the molt. If you think it’ll help—“</p><p>He lets himself look down at their interlaced fingers, and Raihan tries his best to keep his voice under control. “You should go.”</p><p>Leon is silent, but the shuffle of his wings is enough to give his true feelings away. Then, he’s sniffling and rubbing at his eyes, a small smile creeping its way onto his face. “... I love you. So, <em> so </em> much.”</p><p>Raihan reaches over with his free hand to wipe away a few tears from the demon’s cheeks and lets out his own shaky, wet laugh. “I know, mate. I love you too. Thank you for telling me.” </p><p>Leon smiles wider, reaching up to keep Raihan's palm against his cheek. “I wish you could come with but— uh,”</p><p>“Hellfire pits and eternal damnation, yeah?” Raihan says. “Don’t worry babe, I’ve got my hands full here with running both our accounts for a while. Go catch up with your brother and that new champ for me, and let them know how smoking hot your boyfriend is, okay? Even by Hell’s standards.”</p><p>“You’re so vain,” Leon says, beaming so bright now, his golden eyes glimmering with tears and there’s so much— love and adoration and just, <em> everything</em>, all directed towards him, and Raihan thinks that there really isn’t anything he<em> wouldn’t </em>do for the demon. <em>His</em> demon. “That’s a lame comparison.”</p><p>“Because I’d win easily?”</p><p>Leon pulls him in for a kiss. “Yes.”</p><p>They kiss again, and again, in each other’s arms the whole time, mapping the familiar path and rhythm with their mouths. Only this time, Raihan can’t shake how fleeting everything feels now. </p><p>But it’s for the best, he tells himself, it’s what he— what they both want for him. So Raihan buries his face into Leon’s locks of purple hair, runs his hands along his waist, and memorizes every curve and angle of his body against his just as Leon does his.</p>
<hr/><p>In the end, Raihan sends a text to Hop telling him that Leon’s changed his mind about visiting home and to come by whenever he plans on leaving. They pick a date, a time, a method of travel, and Hop drops by that Thursday to pick Leon up. </p><p>It’s like this that Raihan finds himself on the couch, sitting cross-legged before a dusty Ouija board that Leon had managed to root out from the bottom of his sock drawer.</p><p>It’s not as polished as he remembers it was when he first got it, granted, but the years of disuse have managed to preserve most of the black calligraphy on the mahogany board save for a few scratches and skid marks from being jostled around in his drawer. The planchette is in good condition as well, and Raihan allows himself to once more admire the elegant carvings on it as he sets it down onto the center of the board. </p><p>Without another word, Leon places a finger on its tip. </p><p>“Was this really how you did it last time?”</p><p>“More or less,” Leon smiles back. “Ask away.”</p><p>Raihan looks back down. He readjusts the fingers he has on its base, and lets out a long breath. It’s been a long time. “Is anybody there?” </p><p>Leon’s finger guides the planchette to the top left corner.</p><p>
  <em> YES. </em>
</p><p>Always.</p><p>Raihan can’t help the little quip that slips out, even as he keeps his eyes on the board. “Hey, babe.”</p><p>“Hey back,” Leon says, voice warm and teasing before he lets Raihan tug them back down to the text at the bottom. </p><p>The planchette’s eye lands on the first letter, and Raihan lets out a long breath he didn’t know was holding. Then, he moves it across the rest of the word, sounding each letter out until he reaches the end.</p><p>
  <em> GOODBYE. </em>
</p><p>There’s silence in the room. </p><p>Raihan looks up and meets Leon’s gaze. He can see himself in his boyfriend’s golden eyes— sees his own hesitant and cautious expression reflected back at him, and Raihan finally lets himself be selfish for a moment as he thinks, <em> I don’t want him to go.  </em></p><p>If Leon notices it, he gives no reaction, going instead to cup at the sides of Raihan’s face and tilting it upwards so he can kiss him. “I’ll miss you, Rai. I won’t be long, promise.”</p><p>Raihan swallows hard, but returns the gesture. “Right back at you.”</p><p>Leon smiles, “Take care of Dura too. He likes my pets more.”</p><p>“Oh, fuck off. You've always been his favorite.”</p><p>Leon laughs and pulls back to link hands with Hop. There’s a bit more banter, a few more wishes to be well, and then Raihan watches as his boyfriend disappears into thin air. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Raihan wakes to an empty bed and the distinct feeling of something missing in his arms.</p><p>Then, his alarm sounds for 7:00 am, and he’s propping himself up on his elbows, groaning at the splitting headache and the way the world spins until he sits upright properly. Part of him kind of just wants to flop back down and suffocate himself into the covers— or at least, until his second alarm goes off— but Raihan forces himself to swing a leg over the side of the bed, then the other, before standing up.</p><p>The world spins again, and wow, that’s really going to be the last time he tries to match Nessa’s pace when they go out. </p><p>He sits back down.</p><p>It’s been… a while since Leon left, and Raihan’s stopped thinking. He kind of has to, because he doesn’t think he can actually confront the blatant emptiness that’s taken over the flat since Leon’s leave. He hadn't noticed it before, but the latter's presence has always lingered around Raihan regardless of if he was nearby; like a sort of constant comfort or gut feeling that the demon would always be listening out for him. He doesn't feel like that anymore, because Leon is gone, busy off visiting family and friends in another realm of existence where he can’t contact or reach him. Raihan tells himself that he’s— okay with it, even if all he really wants to do right now is hug his boyfriend close, cry into his chest and then kiss his stupid pretty silly pretty face. Fuck. </p><p>He's too busy to mope anyway nowadays, especially after he’s taken on a few larger projects and collabs with Nessa and Sonia recently. There's also a lot of catching up in person with Piers to do now that he’s finally returned from tour, and a few more sponsors to shoot for, and his accounts— and Raihan tries <em>not</em> to think about how he's probably running away from all his problems. It's not like those all-nighters will pull themselves, no matter how many concerned glances Sebastian and his other interns keep shooting him at work.</p><p>Everything just feels like a daze right now, like Raihan is floating through his daily life and going through his actions in sequential motion. It just... doesn't feel right, without Leon by his side, with his slightly crooked grin and bright laughter and cute expressions as the first and last thing he sees in bed and in general all throughout the day. He doesn't know if that side of the bed and this whole apartment has ever felt this... uninfested before. He hasn't felt this alone before either, even taking to account the time he'd spent living by himself right after leaving his family. </p><p>The main difference, he thinks, is that Leon's never had a reason <em>not</em> to leave him, so he's always been by Raihan's side ever since the start of their contract. Now, though, the demon's visiting family— and gone back to a home that's not their flat, that's not <em>Raihan</em>, whereas Raihan has neither option available, and that just worsens the gnawing feeling in his chest and makes him want to bury his face back into his pillow and stop thinking even more. </p><p>At least Leon had been right about Duraludon missing him too, because the little traitorous lizard has been especially clingy for pets and feeding recently. Speaking of which, he's probably due to be fed these next few days, so it's about time he gets up to do so before going to work.</p><p>For now, that's enough incentive for Raihan to stand back up and start his day. </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>i really wanted it to be two chapters but my brain said no. why am i like this</p><p>also yes leon may have possessed raihan if he wasn't such a tree</p><p>short epilogue and last part will be up by around tomorrow. it ends happy i promise</p><p>Thanks for reading!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Dancin' with Devils</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>"short" epilogue. contains uh quite explicit content with more wings. uve been warned.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p> </p><p>One month later, there’s a knock on his door.</p><p>Hop looks him up and down the moment Raihan opens it. “Woah. You look really bad.”</p><p>Raihan doesn’t know what to expect of his life now, but being judged by a demon on his doorstep isn’t really one of his top choices. “Thanks, I pulled an all-nighter. Is that a new meat suit?”</p><p>“Yup!” Hop says and runs a hand through his new mop of purple hair for emphasis. “I really like this one ‘cause he matches with Lee! Maybe I’ll keep it.”</p><p>“Please don’t.”</p><p>The demon’s grin widens. “Well, now I just gotta, don’t I. Can I come in?”</p><p>“Sure,” Raihan steps aside, using the chance to ruffle the teenager's hair when he comes in. “How’ve you been, kid?”</p><p>“Good,” Hop wiggles his shoes off, and then promptly bounds over to flop face-down first on the couch. He hums and takes a moment to squish his face into the cushions before sitting up. “Did you get everything done?”</p><p>“Oh, yeah,” Raihan jerks a thumb toward the balcony, and where he’d just spent the last six hours drawing chalk circles into the tiled ground. His back is in immense pain right now. “Took me a while, though— thanks for texting the instructions beforehand.”</p><p>“No problem! Lee’s really excited to be back so we wanted this to go through without a hitch, which is why I’m here to supervise. You guys have changed satanic rituals so much since their conception that you’ve gotten all the symbols wrong.”</p><p>Raihan cocks an eyebrow, trying to hide his smile. “You learn that in history class today?”</p><p>Hop puffs his chest out in mock-pride. “Sociology,” he clarifies, “I’m a top student, apparently.” Then, he’s hopping back onto his feet, and tugging Raihan towards the sliding window door. “Come <em>on</em>, Lee’s waiting! I hope he didn’t get lost again on the way, though,”</p><p>“Yeah, please tell me I didn’t break my back just for Leon to miss his trans-dimensional bus stop.” Raihan lets the demon pull him over, stopping only when he’s about to open the door to the balcony. “Hey, ki— Hop.”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>There’s no elegant way to phrase this, even though he had been practicing in the mirror beforehand, so Raihan just steels himself and goes for it. “I… really appreciate it. You coming out here and helping with all this. I know we kind of got off on the wrong foot last time and it’s probably weird for you that Leon’s been living with me this whole time instead of home so…” Wow, he’s really not great at vocalizing his own feelings. Raihan sticks his hand into his hoodie, if only for a sense of comfort. “Thanks. For being cool with it.”</p><p>Hop turns around, regarding Raihan with slitted pupils. He lets go of the edge of his hoodie, and digs his own hands into the pockets of his jacket. “It’s no biggie. Sorry for nearly shoving a shadow down your throat in the bathroom.”</p><p>“Oh. Was that what you were going to d—”</p><p>“Yeah,” Hop looks down and kicks at the floor aimlessly, once again a spitting image of his brother. “But I wasn’t actually going to hurt you. I just wanted to see the human that made Lee leave home for good this time. He’s always had a soft spot for humans, but you were the first that he’s ever really gone this far to be with. I was curious.”</p><p>“Oh.” Raihan doesn’t know how to reply to that, so he settles for just echoing his previous statement. Then he scrambles to make up for the following silence. “I thought— you didn’t know about that.”</p><p>“I kind of always did, from the beginning. Lee’s just different, you know, even from everyone else back home. He’s always been more kind and empathetic— trying to take on more than he should and letting them make him into a figurehead. Doesn’t let the people around him define what he should and shouldn’t be. ‘Swhy I look up to him so much, even if there are some things he can’t tell me.”</p><p>“... Sorry.”</p><p>Hop looks back at him, eyes glowing in the dim shadow cast by the sunlight filtering through the glass windows. Raihan is reminded that he’s still talking to an entity who’s over a thousand years old, even if he’s standing before him in a fourteen-year-old’s body right now.</p><p>“I want my brother to be happy,” Hop says. “And if that means he doesn’t want to talk to me about some things, that’s okay too— as long as you’re there with him instead in my place.” He tilts his head at him, “You make him happy, Raihan.”</p><p>That awakens something in him; something that Raihan’s been working on soothing for the past few weeks before his boyfriend’s return. Part of him wants to say <em>no</em>, he <em>doesn’t</em>, because all he’d wanted to do was for Leon to be happy, to support him and keep him safe during his molt, but Leon had been sad and depressed <em>anyways </em>and that’s why he left— and then Raihan is shoving all of those feelings down again before he can begin to process them. “I just— try my best.”</p><p>Hop shrugs, “Sometimes it’s enough, sometimes it’s not. Doesn’t invalidate your efforts though.” The demon’s gaze softens. He rocks a bit on his heels, still pushing his hands into his pockets. “I think Lee feels the same way too. That’s why you’re both good for each other.”</p><p>“... Thanks, Hop.” He’s heard similar sentiments— from both Nessa and Piers during the time they’ve gone out drinking this past month, but there’s a way that Hop phrases it, simple and concise, that really hits home. At the same time, Raihan kind of has unspoken issues about crying in front of a teenager, age-old demon or not, so he clears his throat before speaking again. “You’re a good— uh,— demon.”</p><p>“You can keep calling me ‘kid’; I find it really funny, actually,” Hop grins, wide and bright. “Also, I know it’s probably, like, counterintuitive coming from a demon, but you can count that as my blessing, alright?”</p><p>“How—”</p><p>“<em>Duh</em>,” Hop says, rolling his eyes as he starts tugging Raihan back towards the balcony. “You’re just as clueless as Lee sometimes. Now hurry up and get to summoning, I have cram school in an hour!”</p><p> </p><p>It takes a while to light all the candles and incense, and to set everything else up properly— and then Raihan is finally kneeling before the pentagram on the balcony feeling a very strong case of deja vu. At least this time it’s willingly, he reminds himself, with no silly robes or stupid hymns, and the only bystander around to gawk is a literal fiend from Hell. Summoning has a much better ambiance and set up this time, especially because Hop doesn’t even bother looking up from his phone as he waits for Raihan to finish the preparations.</p><p>He also won’t deny that he’s shaking a bit from excitement from the prospect of <em>finally </em>being able to see and hug and kiss with his boyfriend, even if they’ve only been apart for a short while. The thought also helps squash something else inside him, a nervous, kind of nauseating twist of his gut that Raihan tries to force down for now. He looks over to Hop for permission. “So, any time?”</p><p>“Yep!” Hop nods, tapping away at his phone. “Just say whatever, and that should be enough to guide him here even if he’s lost. He said he’ll keep an ear out.”</p><p>Raihan can’t help the way the grin spreads across his face. “Even if it’s something gross like how much I want to kiss him?”</p><p>“Eww.”</p><p>Hop makes an over-exaggerated gagging noise, and Raihan laughs out loud before turning back to the circle. He looks up at the sky, then back down at the circle before him, still smiling giddily to himself.</p><p>“Babe,” he whispers, almost more to himself than anyone else. Because he knows it’s never going to go unheard. “<em>Leon</em>. I—”</p><p>There’s a familiar rush of cold air again when all the candles go out, and Raihan can feel the hairs on his neck rise, a shiver run down his spine from anticipation. He keeps his eyes down, counting under his breath and waiting for them to flicker back on, and <em>god</em>, Raihan feels like he’s going to vibrate out of his skin at how fast his heart is pounding.</p><p>After what feels like an eternity, the candles light themselves again, and Raihan shoots to his feet immediately, feeling like he’s going to burst from how much he’s beaming.</p><p>“No dressing up this time?” Leon asks, as he steps out of the circle and into Raihan’s arms. He’s dressed in a plain shirt and pants, albeit shoeless, with hellfire licking at the fringes of his hair and the soles of his feet. His wings are bare bones again, folded neatly behind his back without a single smudge of grey on the white fabric of his shirt. Raihan doesn’t hesitate to bury his face into the crook of his neck. “I thought you’d go full-out to welcome me back.”</p><p>“Shut up,” Raihan says, even though he doesn’t want Leon to shut up, ever. He holds the demon so close in his arms, taking in the warmth of his boyfriend against him and the lingering scent of smoke and ashes on his skin. “I knew you liked those stupid robes more than you let on.”</p><p>“They complement your ass well,” Leon smiles. Then, he’s tucking himself under Raihan’s chin, wrapping his arms around his waist and hugging him just as tight. Raihan can feel him grinning into his chest, so he does too into his shoulder. “I missed you so much, Rai.”</p><p>“Me too,” Raihan mumbles and presses his face into Leon’s soft purple locks. He’s wanted this too fucking much this past month. “Couldn’t even wait for me to finish my sentence, huh?”</p><p>“No,” Leon says. “Hell doesn’t have a concept of time, but I thought about you every day.” He pulls back, slipping one hand out from under Raihan’s to drag it through his locs on a similar wavelength. Raihan sighs, eyes fluttering close from the sensation.</p><p>It feels like he’s waking up from a dream, now that Leon is finally here, in the flesh and in his arms, carding gentle fingers through his hair and murmuring into his ear. Suddenly, the entirety of last month, from the empty bed to the empty flat and the empty feeling in his chest is something in the past, because Leon is back, and he already looks so much better and happier and thriving now, and Raihan is <em>really </em>going to fucking cry at this rate.</p><p>“I love you,” he mumbles out. “I missed you. I hope you’re better.”</p><p>Leon’s tone is tender and warm. “I know,” he says quietly. “I’m sorry I took so long, but I’m okay now. I’m here.”</p><p>It’s undignified, but Raihan lets himself sniffle a bit into Leon’s shirt before finally pulling back and blinking away hot tears. “We could, uh, move this inside. There’s a lot of clutter here." He signals the whole summoning set-up.</p><p>“Yeah,” Leon looks like he’s also about to cry, his gorgeous golden eyes wet and shiny. Even so, they keep standing there, holding hands and taking in the sight of each other.</p><p>Raihan wants to bend forward and kiss his boyfriend so much, but that can wait— until later. For now, he turns back to Hop, who’s still keeping his eyes very firmly glued to his phone screen. “I… Hop. Thanks.”</p><p>“It was so good to be home,” Leon adds. “But I’m going to miss you again so much, Hopscotch.”</p><p>Hop nods, getting to his feet to throw his arms around Leon’s waist. “I’ll miss you too, Lee,” he says, face buried into his brother’s chest. Raihan steps back to allow the brothers their own private moment.“But I’ll visit again, promise! And maybe Victor can come next time too!”</p><p>“That sounds awesome,” Leon grins up at him like a puppy, and Raihan flashes him a thumbs-up in response. “I’m sure he’d love to drop by and meet Raihan. Are you staying for lunch?”</p><p>“Nah,” Hop gives his brother one last squeeze before pulling back. “I’ve got work to do, and I want to try going to school before I have to go back. I’ll text you though!” He glances at Raihan, then bounces over to hug him. “You too, Raihan. Good luck!”</p><p>He does end up melting a bit at that, so Raihan squeezes Hop back, pointedly ignoring the perplexed look Leon shoots both of them. “Take care, kid.”</p><hr/><p>They watch Hop scamper off back into the living room and tug his shoes back on. He waves energetically, putting his whole arm into it, and gives Raihan the thumbs-up before closing the door behind him. He’s not that bad, after all, Raihan thinks grudgingly. Kind of creepily observant and intuitive, even for a demon. But not bad at all.</p><p>Leon’s still looking at him when he turns back, an amused but quizzical smile playing at his lips, and Raihan realizes that he’s also grinning kind of goofily. “I. Uh.”</p><p>“I wasn’t aware you two became such good friends while I was away,” Leon says as he takes his hands again. “I’m glad you’re getting along though.”</p><p>“He’s a good kid,” Raihan admits, reiterating his previous statement. “I think I judged him too quickly at first but— we talked for a bit before you came back and I think we’ve come to an understanding. Wouldn’t mind if he drops by more often so I can get to know him more.” He spots a small unruly tuft of hair, and attempts to tuck it behind Leon’s ear.</p><p>Leon tilts his face into his touch. “I’m glad I’m back, Rai. I really wanted to see you this whole time.”</p><p>He starts to lean in, and that’s when Raihan swallows the lump in his throat and puts a bit of distance between them. “Wait. I need to talk to you about something. It’s about our contract.”</p><p>Leon blinks. “What is it?”</p><p>Well, no use putting it off any longer. Raihan licks his suddenly dry lips, feeling his pulse hammering in his ear and the back of his neck growing hot. Leon keeps looking at him expectantly, gorgeous and ethereal in the sunlight on the balcony, and so bright, so perfect from every angle, and Raihan thinks that there’s really no one else he’d rather be with at any singular moment. But Leon is waiting on an answer, so he forces the words out, fumbling with them all the while.</p><p>“I know you’ve only just got back, Lee, but I’ve had the whole month to think about us— by uh, mostly not thinking about how you were gone. And working my ass off.” This is going great. Raihan sucks in air. “And I think that. Clued me in on something. I really want you to be happy, all the time, because I love you, and I’m so glad you’re better now, but…” He trails off for a moment, clearing the rasp in his throat and blinking away the sudden wetness in his eyes. “When you left I— didn’t know if you would come back, and I think it hit me harder than I let on.”</p><p>“... Raihan.” Leon reaches up again, taking his face into his hands. His thumb rubs gently against his cheekbones before wiping away at the corner of his eye. “It’s okay. I don’t plan on leaving you ever again, I promise.”</p><p>Raihan shakes his head, “That’s not it. I’ve been thinking about this for a bit now, but I think— no, I’m sure now.</p><p>“I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”</p><p>Then, he’s slipping out of the demon’s arms and getting down to one knee. He pulls out the small box he’s been keeping in his hoodie the whole time and opens it to reveal the ring he’d picked out a few weeks prior. It’s simple, but elegant— a platinum band with small, swirled carvings along the side.</p><p>Raihan watches Leon’s eyes widen before he pours his heart out. “Leon. Will you marry me?”</p><p>There’s stunned silence. Leon’s still staring at him with wide eyes and an unreadable expression, so Raihan struggles to follow up, keeping his eyes down and trying not to let more tears spill over at the prospect of the demon potentially not ... agreeing. Or seeing a point to this at all. “I— uh, know it probably doesn’t mean much to you since you’re immortal, and all that, so it’s— okay if. It’s just another added condition to our contract, but I just—”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>He stops mid-sentence, voice dying. Leon is looking down at him, large tears slipping down his cheeks and face already flushed from crying, and he’s smiling wide, so wide, and Raihan thinks again that he can see stars and galaxies in his golden eyes.</p><p>“Yes,” Leon says again. “Absolutely, of course yes.”</p><p>Raihan wavers. Before he can react, however, Leon is tugging him up so he can throw his arms around his shoulders and kiss him hard on the lips. He’s still processing all of it, mind completely blank even though Raihan can feel his own arms wrap around Leon, holding him flushed close as he tastes how soft and wet his mouth is. He can feel how the other’s wings fold around him, as if Leon’s trying to one-up him by cradling him in their embrace.</p><p>It's like a dam breaking, when Raihan starts to sob, and finally lets everything he's kept up inside for the past few months flood out. He's just so— relieved and ecstatic and in love and ready to spend the rest of his life with the person he loves and all he can really do is try to kiss the demon senseless. Leon cries with him, and the kiss quickly goes from emotional and intimate to gross and sloppy, but that’s beyond either of their notice now.</p><p>They stay there for a bit longer, re-exploring the sensation of just— being together, being whole. Raihan breaks for air, and gazes into slitted pupils. “I… I thought,” he chokes on his own tears and snot. “I thought you wouldn’t want to— or care, because I’m still just a human—”</p><p>Leon silences him with another kiss. “You are <em>so </em>much more than that, Rai— you've always been. I thought I made that clear.” He cups at his face again, grinning through tears. “I want to spend all the time we have together.”</p><p>Raihan stares at him, and then cries harder. This time, it’s Leon who pulls him down and tucks him under his chin, runs a hand through his locks, and lets him sob into his shirt.</p><p>"I..." Raihan tries his best to blink away the blurriness. His nose is all stuffy now, and he tries his best to wiggle out of the demon's strong hold on him. "Leon. Ring."</p><p>Leon blinks, and then laughs and lets him go. Raihan takes the ring out from its box and slips it on. He stares at it for a bit, breathless at the sight of it on the demon's ring finger.</p><p>Leon stares at it too. "Thank you. It's beautiful."</p><p>“You’re beautiful.” Raihan says, and Leon laughs again; wipes tears from his eyes. “Do you want to go inside now? I’m sure there’s— a lot to catch up on.”</p><p>Leon smiles back at him, and leads Raihan to place his hands around his waist.</p><p>“Later,” he says, as he rests his head against his chest and closes his eyes, and Raihan doesn’t disagree.</p><hr/><p>Leon sighs softly as he nestles between Raihan’s legs. “It’s been a while since we’ve done this… Might have to rediscover some things— ‘m rusty.”</p><p>“Please,” Raihan cards a gentle hand through Leon’s hair, prompting a small sound of comfort from the demon when he scratches his scalp just right. His boyfriend— fiance, now, and Raihan feels his heart swell again at the thought— hums into his touch, eyes slipping close as he leans the entire weight of his head into his palm. “We have all the time in the world— though I really doubt you’ve forgotten, babe.”</p><p>Leon looks back up at him with lidded eyes, and Raihan feels something clench in his abs at the heated gaze under long dark lashes. It’s been some time since Leon’s looked at him like that; since this part of his demon nature reared his head. Leon is hungry— in a way that’s much more primal and inherent than what he’s like normally, slit pupils dilated to diamonds and gold irises darkened to amber from an intense want and need. He’s not scared, per se, but this just… reminds Raihan to sometimes see him less as a lover and more as the infernal being he actually is— especially when it feels and looks like all Leon wants to do is consume him, body and spirit full right now.</p><p>And, well, Raihan would be lying if he said that didn’t turn him on just a <em> little </em>bit.</p><p>He doesn’t even have to say anything before Leon is tugging down the zipper of his pants, rubbing his cheek against the tent in his boxers with another sigh.</p><p>Raihan shivers, able to feel the demon’s hot breath even through the layer of cloth over his dick. This has happened enough times that he sort of knows to just sit back and let Leon do what he wants— what he needs to do to fulfill himself. He lets out a hitched breath when Leon pokes his tongue out to lap a wet spot over the head of his cock, before fully wrapping his lips around it and suckling. Large golden eyes stare up at him, glazed over with lust, and Raihan gives a low whistle.</p><p>“... Tease.”</p><p>Leon’s smile is smug and sharp as he finally tugs Raihan out, stroking him to full hardness in his hand. “Can you blame me? I’ve waited so long for this.”</p><p>Raihan smiles and tangles his fingers in a few strands of Leon’s hair. “I know, baby. Me too—” He chokes off with a hiss when Leon takes him into his mouth suddenly, hips nearly bucking up by instinct from how sensitive it is before he manages to stop himself. “Fuck, babe, your mouth is <em> so </em> good.”</p><p>“Mmhm,” Leon pulls back for a moment to rest his chin on Raihan’s right inner thigh so he can nuzzle at his penis. His tongue is hot and wet, and maybe, uh, a few centimeters longer than normal as he drags it down the length of Raihan’s dick, and Raihan shivers at the cold trail of spit it leaves behind. “Wanna make this good for you.”</p><p>Then, he’s taking all of him back in again, one hand wrapped around his base while the other one steadies him against Raihan’s thigh. Raihan bites back a loud moan as Leon sucks and licks around him, his mouth a tight pressure around his cock that makes it throb so good. He’s making <em>such </em>obscene sounds too, small involuntary whimpers and sighs escaping from the demon as he works his way down. Raihan can’t help tightening the grip on his hair a bit, and Leon groans in assent, eyelashes fluttering.</p><p>“God, you’re so gorgeous,” Raihan purrs. “Love the way you look like this, Leon, sucking my cock and loving it—”</p><p>Leon lets out another whine in response, breathing hard through his nose. He keeps swallowing around him, cheeks hollowed out and eyes rolled up a bit into his head. They don’t do this often, Leon giving head, but whenever they do the demon is content to just go to town on his cock— and Raihan’s content to just sit back and let him.</p><p>Raihan lets him go for a bit longer, until he can start to feel the beginnings of a tight knot building in the pit of his stomach. He tugs on his hair again. “What— do you want?”</p><p>Leon gives him one last hard suck before pulling off, chest heaving and drool all over his chin. “Want you inside me,” he nearly whines out. He’s full-on grinding his own erection against his palm now, and laps another trail down his cock. “Rai, <em> please— </em>”</p><p>Raihan feels his own mouth water at the sight of the demon— how much of a mess he is just from sucking him off, <em> god </em>— before he’s scooting back to prop himself up against the headboard of the bed. Leon follows suit, tugging off his shorts and the rest of his clothes as he straddles his hips; rocks back and whines at the press of Raihan’s wet cock against the curve of his ass. Then, he’s straightening himself up, and Raihan blanches at the wings that unfold from his back in time.</p><p>“I— Okay.” He says. “Wow.”</p><p>Leon looks abashed, ears and face red. “I… want you to touch them. While we...”</p><p>Raihan swallows harshly, and extends a hand out to brush his fingers against the tip of it. There’s no sign of molting anymore, no ash streaks or loose feathers; just the bare skeleton frame that he’s most familiar with. “Are you sure? Doesn’t it hurt?” He rolls a joint between his index and thumb, testing out the strength of the limb.</p><p>Leon shakes his head, and nudges the wing further into Raihan’s grip as confirmation. “Not anymore. But there’s still— a bit of sensation left. This can work instead of oil.” He pours a bit of lube onto Raihan’s hand, then guides it up and down the limb in a stroking motion. “Ah, <em> yeah— </em> like that—”</p><p>Raihan bites his lip, feeling his erection harden and drip even more just from Leon’s sounds. He can’t help bucking his hips up in tandem with the stroking motion, wrenching another moan from the demon. “Come on, babe. Can’t have you coming from foreplay yet.”</p><p>The demon shoots him an equally offended and exasperated look, and then Leon is rolling them over so that their positions are switched. Raihan takes the lube off the nightstand, squeezing a bit onto his fingers and slicking them up before he presses one slowly into Leon’s ass. Leon lets out a small grunt as Raihan works the entire digit in, ruts back against it to get used to the feeling.</p><p>Raihan lets out a pleased groan, starting to move his finger in and out of him. “You’re always so tight around me, feels so good I wanna fuck you already—”</p><p>“Y-yeah,” Leon mumbles out around his tongue, bracing his hands against Raihan’s shoulders and spreading his thighs wider as Raihan begins to ease another one in. He shudders, and it goes all the way through his body to the tip of the wing Raihan has in his hand. “I— wanted this for <em> so </em> long, Rai, back in Hell— it’s not the same with just my fingers…” His fiance looks up at him, face flushed and gold eyes sort of wet already from being overstimulated and Raihan thinks it’s— really, the perfect picture of heaven. “Please… hurry.”</p><p>God. Not for the first time, Raihan is extremely grateful for his decision to run away from his overly religious family.</p><p>“I know,” he whispers out in response, voice raspy and mouth dry. “I know. Just give me a moment, and I’ll give you what you want baby—what we both want.” With that, he starts to pump his fingers, going slow but steady until he’s sure Leon is used to the feeling. He goes for a bit longer after that, slowly scissoring them and stretching his hole out. Then, he pulls his fingers out, lubes up his own cock and positions himself against his entrance. “Like this?”<br/><br/>Leon nods, one hand now wrapped around the base of his own cock. He bites his lip in anticipation. “Yeah. D— don’t bother going slow.”</p><p>Raihan nods back, and then presses in with one single movement. He draws himself back out to full length, and plunges back inside, and Leon throws his head back and <em>moans</em>. It’s such a relief— for both of them— and Raihan can’t stop himself as he just repeats the movement, again and again, faster and faster, burying his dick into Leon’s ass and feeling him squeeze around him; hearing the soft and slick sounds of their hips slapping together. “God, Leon—”</p><p>Leon is barely managing to hold himself together, mouth dropping open and nails digging into Raihan’s back. His wings twitch and spasm under him with every thrust. “Ah— Rai, <em> Raihan </em> , harder, harder, <em> please— </em>”</p><p>He breaks off again as Raihan angles himself in deeper, trying to get at his prostate. It’s a bit— awkward, in this position, especially when he wants to get a hold of Leon’s wings at the same time, so he gives Leon a few more deep thrusts, then pulls out so he can flip him over onto his stomach, ignoring the demon’s protesting whine. Raihan pushes back in, now wrapping a hand around a wing and pulling it back to press kisses against the limb as he fucks into him again.</p><p>Leon’s back arches immediately, eyes rolling up into his head. “<em> Oh. </em>”</p><p>Raihan has to bite back a self-satisfied smirk—because wow, is he a genius— before he’s rubbing his fingers against the wing again, stroking it in time with his thrusts. “You like that, baby?” he manages to pant out, “Fuck, you look <em> so </em> pretty like this—”</p><p>“Yes,” Leon sobs out, hands scrabbling at the sheets underneath him. Still, he ruts back against Raihan; curves further into his touch. “Yes, <em> yes </em>—”</p><p>It’s not anything new for Leon to get mouthy in bed, but it <em> is </em> for him to be such a mess of emotions and pleasure, and Raihan can feel the heat start to coil again in his abdomen, this time hotter and tighter than ever. Leon’s starting to shake too, so he just keeps fucking and stroking the demon off, slamming their hips together and grinding in as deep as he can. “Leon, ‘m gonna—”</p><p>Leon doesn’t even manage to respond properly before he gets there first, body and wings going rigid and mouth open in a silent gasp as he comes onto the bed. He clenches down even harder around his cock, and Raihan lets his head loll back and a satisfied groan spill from his lips as he shoots inside. Then, he flops forward, sucking a small hickey on the side of Leon’s neck as they both shake and recover from the high.</p><p>“Holy shit,” Raihan says, once he’s caught his breath. “...That was worth the one-month long wait.”</p><p>“Mhm,” Leon nudges at him to get off, so Raihan rolls them both to the side to avoid lying down on the mess. Leon’s wings disappear with a small flourish, and the demon sighs happily and tucks himself against the crook of Raihan’s shoulder, too content in the afterglow to form words.</p><p>Raihan presses a kiss to his forehead. “You good, Lee?” He shifts his position so that they’re both curled up against each other, and links their hands together. He rubs a thumb over the ring on Leon’s finger, and feels his heart swell again.</p><p>“Yeah. I…” Leon says dreamily, expression stuck in a blissful smile. “You better fuck me like that on our wedding night.”</p><p>Raihan blinks, and then laughs and kisses his fiance on the lips this time. “Making plans already?”</p><p>“Not yet,” Leon hums into it. “Just that one.”</p><p>“I guess that’s one good thing to come out of your molt, huh?” Raihan can’t help but tease. “Now you have a whole new erogenous zone to explore. I’ll be hopelessly blue-balled again.”</p><p>“Shut up, you know you’ll be there to watch,” Leon butts at him gently with his head. Then, he’s linking their hands together, staring down at their intertwined fingers. “And… it’s two good things.”</p><p>Raihan looks down as well. He rubs a thumb over the ring on the demon’s finger, and feels his chest swell again. “I love you,” he says softly, with all his heart and more.</p><p>“I love you too,” Leon says back, matching him. “I— didn’t think this would, or could, ever happen to me, but I’m so glad it did.”</p><p>“... Some contract right?”</p><p>Leon smiles up at Raihan. “Some indeed.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>wow... that was a trainwreck but now they're ENGAGED. also thank <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/shamusiel">shamusiel</a> for teaching me how to write horny. ilu</p><p>thank you to everyone for following this to its end, its been a long ride but i hope it was worth it! ive written all that i wanted to for this au... perhaps there will be more in the future if i get new inspiration but that's all for now. </p><p>check out <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23002450">part 3</a> of this series written by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/antikytheras">antikytheras</a> !! i will shamelessly promote their writing its so good. and yes this whole fic was actually a build-up to their part </p><p>Thanks for reading! pokeverse fic next time.... and perhaps more aus that are currently in work heh. </p><p>find me @murphystoffelis on twitter if u want to listen to me scream and cry a lot about raileon and writing</p>
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